Skip to main content

Full text of "The Private Letters of Sir James Brooke, K.C.B., Rajah of Sarawak: Narrating ..."

See other formats 


This is a digital copy of a book that was preserved for generations on library shelves before it was carefully scanned by Google as part of a project 
to make the world's books discoverable online. 

It has survived long enough for the copyright to expire and the book to enter the public domain. A public domain book is one that was never subject 
to copyright or whose legal copyright term has expired. Whether a book is in the public domain may vary country to country. Public domain books 
are our gateways to the past, representing a wealth of history, culture and knowledge that's often difficult to discover. 

Marks, notations and other marginalia present in the original volume will appear in this file - a reminder of this book's long journey from the 
publisher to a library and finally to you. 

Usage guidelines 

Google is proud to partner with libraries to digitize public domain materials and make them widely accessible. Public domain books belong to the 
public and we are merely their custodians. Nevertheless, this work is expensive, so in order to keep providing this resource, we have taken steps to 
prevent abuse by commercial parties, including placing technical restrictions on automated querying. 

We also ask that you: 

+ Make non-commercial use of the files We designed Google Book Search for use by individuals, and we request that you use these files for 
personal, non-commercial purposes. 

+ Refrain from automated querying Do not send automated queries of any sort to Google's system: If you are conducting research on machine 
translation, optical character recognition or other areas where access to a large amount of text is helpful, please contact us. We encourage the 
use of public domain materials for these purposes and may be able to help. 

+ Maintain attribution The Google "watermark" you see on each file is essential for informing people about this project and helping them find 
additional materials through Google Book Search. Please do not remove it. 

+ Keep it legal Whatever your use, remember that you are responsible for ensuring that what you are doing is legal. Do not assume that just 
because we believe a book is in the public domain for users in the United States, that the work is also in the public domain for users in other 
countries. Whether a book is still in copyright varies from country to country, and we can't offer guidance on whether any specific use of 
any specific book is allowed. Please do not assume that a book's appearance in Google Book Search means it can be used in any manner 
anywhere in the world. Copyright infringement liability can be quite severe. 

About Google Book Search 

Google's mission is to organize the world's information and to make it universally accessible and useful. Google Book Search helps readers 
discover the world's books while helping authors and publishers reach new audiences. You can search through the full text of this book on the web 



at |http : //books . google . com/ 






1^ 



s 



i^^mm$ 










^ 



PRIVATE LETTERS 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 



LONDON : 

PRINTED BY W. CLOWES AND SONS, STAMFORD STREET 
AND CHARING CROSS. 






••• *•• • • 



\\>r>jr*VtA^ v'^ v/^ \ 



THE 



PRIVATE LETTERS 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 

RAJAH OF SARAWAK, 



NARRATING 

THE EVENTS OF HIS LIEE, 

FROM 1838 TO THE PRESENT TIME. 
EDITED BY 

JOHN C. TEMPLER, Esq. 

BARRI8TER-AT-LAW, AND ONE O]^ THE MASTEBS OF HER MAJESTY'S OOUET 
OF EXCHEQUER. 

Nesdo, quod oerte est, quod me tlbi tempgrat astrpm^-BER3n]e. • > ^ 

IN THREE VOLUMES. : . - 

VOL. III. ^ ' 



LONDON: 
RICHARD BENl^LEY, NEW BURLINGTON STREET, 

1853. 



{The Avikor ami Publisher reserve to themselves the right of 
TrcmslaMng this Work.2 



N\«^ 



THE NEW YORKJ 

PUBLIC library! 

A8T0R, LEWOX AND 
TILDEW FOUNDATIOWfl. 



PRIVATE LETTERS 

OF 

SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 



CHAPTER I. 

August 1, 1850, to February 16, 1851. 



No. 128, 
The Rev. Richard Coxe.* 

Singapore, August 1, 1850. 

My dear Richard, 

I SEND you a few hurried lines, to say that we 

are all well, and that we start for Siam to-morrow, or 

the day following, after a weary delay here of two 

months, waiting for a ship. 

I was much obliged by ybur short letter, enclosing 

the one you wrote to Sir ^ — -. These virulent and 

bitter attacks generally overshoot their mark, and 

recoil on the authors. The mail is now coming in ; 

and I doubt not, if they have been renewed in the 

* Archdeacon of Lindis&me, an old schoolfellow of Sir James 
Brooke. 

VOL. ni. B 



2 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

house, that plenty of defenders have started up. Every 
day now, will bring answers to the statements which 
have been set forth through the original agency of 
one manj u e. Mr. Wise, my former agent, and now 
the managing Director of the Eastern Archipelago 
Company. This gentleman offered to make me a 
" second Arkwright," and " one of the richest com- 
moners in England," if I would place implicit con- 
fidence in him. His plan was, that I should sell 
Sarawak to a company, remsdning its governor, and 
this was to be a vast company. This I indignantly 
refused, and would not accept any money from such 
schemes. Mr. Wise, finding me likely to become a 
very unpleasant clog to his golden prospects, deter- 
mined to get such a hold over me, as to prevent my 
acting against his project, but in doing this, he committed 
some acts, which opened my eyes wide. I broke through 
his thongs like cobwebs, and referred him to my legal 
adviser, begging him candidly, to produce all his 
accounts, and to offer the fullest explanations ; adding, 
at the same time, if the explanation was satisfactory, 
he would stand higher in my opinion than ever. He 
would not do this — ^he would not produce the accounts, 
or explain; but whilst he threatened to prosecute, 
he was wise enough to know that a persecution would 
be safer. Fortunately copies of my letters are in 
my possession since 1845. They tell a tale, and are 



Sm JAMES BEOOKE, K.C.B. S 

now in good hands. Out of this came the Borneo 
massacre. There is a mixture of folly and hypocrisy 
afloat on the surface of society, and a political party 
ready to believe anything^ that can damage the 
government, or the servants of the government ; and 
there are always newspapers to be bought or per- 
suaded, to write a man down. Voila tout, my dear 
Dick. 

Yesterday was the anniversary of the battle of 
" Suiting Marrow.'* Pray keep the Slst July apart 
for a special bumper, for during this last year not a 
single innocent life has been taken by these pirates, and 
not a single prahu has fallen into their hands. 

The substantial good of our victory has been greater 
than that of many victories famous in story. 
Ever, my dear friend. 
Your sincere and affectionate, 
J. Bbooke. 



No. 129. 
J. C. Cameron,* Esq. 

V Singapore, October 5, 1850. 

My DEAR Mr. Cameron, 

On landing yesterday, I had the good fortune 
to receive your long letter of July. We now know, 

* J. C. Cameron, Esq., of the finn of Cameron and Booty, 1, Ray- 
mond-boildings, Gray's Inn. 

b2 



4 MtVATE LETTERS OB* 

that the strength of oul* opponents is weakness, and 
their wisdom folly; and I am getting comfortably 
hardened to this steady flow of abuse which, coming 
from men whom I never respected, ought not to depress 
my mind. 

Mr. Humfe's reference to my correspondence was 
very weak : the way would be, to challenge him to 
publish it at length ; and I have given Templer full 
power to act, in regard to the correspondence in his 
possession^ as he may think fit. Placed in circUm-< 
stances of unprecedented novelty slnd great difficulty, 
I did not embrace my position at cmce — and, indeed, 
the position itself altered very rapidly. I am free to 
confess, too, before the world, that my views of duty 
and responsibihty were not so high at first as they have 
since been. Year after year expending my fortune, to 
support those views, I was harassed with the notion of 
my means coming to an end, before the government 
was stable, and I should then willingly have embraced 
assistance from such a company, as I proposed in 
1843. As time proceeded, and I became firmer, I 
began to fear involving the good done, by risking it. 
I thought Sarawak would stand alone ; it was the 
temptation ofiered by Mr. Wise, the " golden prize,*' 
the "vast fortune,*' which first staggered me, and caused 
me to reflect. The idea of participating in such schemes, 
shocked my independence. I deserve little merit, for 



SIR JAMES BBOOEE, ILC.B. 5 

it was not in my nature, to be made rich in that way ; 
and I then came to the conclusion that, for private 
purposes, I had no right to appropriate the revenue of 
Sarawak, beyond remunerating myself for the outlay of 
capital. That, as a ruler, I had a right to expend on 
my personal establishment, a sum proportioned to my 
position, and the amount of revenue, I never doubted. 

You may, then^ my dear Mr. Cameron, plead guilty 
for me, if they accuse me of change of opinion, of light- 
ness of expression, of great want of caution, of folly and 
frivolity ; but that any £sur estimate of my correspon- 
dence should ever prove me to be sordid and avaricious, 
or defflgnedly base and self-seeking, is impossible. I 
am much obliged to Mr. Drummond, but even more 
obliged to Mr. Hume ; and I can readily understand, 
why that gentleman comes to a wrong conclusion : it is 
because he judges me by himself. 

I turn my attention homewards. 

Believe me, my dear Mr. Cameron, 

Yours very sincerely, and obliged, 

J. Brooke. 



6 PRIVATE LETTEKS OF 

No. 130. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Singapore, October 6, 1850. 

Mt DEAR Jack, 

I DO not attempt to thank you, for I am unable 
to do do, and have done so before ; but I feel that I 
like to be obliged to you, and would do as much for 
you, as you hare done for me, provided you are unlucky 
enough to give me the chance* 

Nothing can be kinder than Mr. Drummond, nothing 
better than his speeches ; nothing weaker than Hume's 
case, and nothing more decisive than the majority. 
Mr. Drummond was very right to attack Mr. Wise ; 
the motive cannot be too strongly brought to light, and 
Mr. Wise should not be allowed secretly to work the 
strings of his puppets. I quite approve likewise, if you 
do, of your publishing the letters or anything else. I 
send you some others ; you will see, that they are to 
my motheif, and she treasured them, and I found them 
when she left the world. What pain would all this 
have given her ! for she was sensitive in the extreme. 

There should be a preface by you, and a running 
commentary. I leave it and everything in your hands, 
and you need only refer to me, when you think it ne- 
cessary. 



SIR JAMES- BROOKE, E.C.B. 7 

1 write under great pressure* The mission in Siam 
is a dead failure ; they must be taught a lesson, as 
they are committing frightful outrages on British 8ul>- 
jects. The more experience I acquire, the more I am 
convinced, that our policy should be commanding^ and 
our power exerted, when necessary. My policy in 
Sarawak has been high-handed against evildoers, and 
there, and in England and in Siam, there are bad to be 
punished, as well as good to be cared for. Your slip- 
shod policy is in the end a bloody and cruel one. 
Civilization and power in our hands, authorize us to 
punish, to correct, as well as to foster, native govern- 
ments ; and, practically, there can be no greater folly, 
than talking and acting on the principle of non-inter- 
ference with governments, which by their ordinary 
action destroy trade, impede progress, and shed more 
blood, habitually and wantonly, than any course of 
stringent and commanding measures could shed, to 
attain security for the native population, and peace for 
ourselves. I cannot write more on that topic, and have 
only time to glance at Labuan and SarawaL The 

former, ever since 's removal, has been a happy 

little place, and will get on, if that Company is re- 
modelled and made effective. Sarawak thrives, and I 
think soon, that I can send you returns, to show the effects 
of the policy I am pursuing, which as yet, is but in its 
dawn. There are at thb moment eight vessels under 



8 PBIVATE LETTERS OF 

English colours employed between Sarawak and this 
jiwoey and the trade of the entire coast has. vastly in- 
creased. Borneo government is still the great impedi- 
ment to a more rapid and even better state of affairs. 

There has been a fights between the Dutch and the 
Chinese Eunsi, a Ck)mpany in Sambas. This is the 
Iron Trade Company, which, pushed on its own ground, 
made a sally against a place called Pawowkat, inba^ 
habited by other Chinese, and took it: the people, 
some four thousand, have all fled to Sarawak in great 
distress ; but they will be a useful population, though 
I want no large body of Chinese for fear of the natives 
Farewell, my dear Jack ; I have no time for anything 
about Greenwich or Bridport or the dear folks there. 
My kindest regards to the dear wife and children and 
all the rest ; and ever believe me, 

Your affectionate and obliged firiend, 

J. Brooejb. 



October 7, 1850. 
I enclose a small literary curiosity, a letter from the 
Prince Chow-Fa-Mungkuk, or, literally, the Crown 
Prince or Lord of Heaven. How I rejoiced to hear 
such good accounts of your dear folks, and how much 
I should have liked to have made that excursion with 



SIB JAMES BROOKB, E.C.B. 9 

you to Devonshire 1 Think you, Jack, we can take 
together a week's walking excursion, to the westward 
of Penzance, when the heather and the furze are in full 
blossom, and when crag and cliff are lighted up i^ith a 
bright sunshine, and the dark rocks and green sea are 
merry on a May day ? In former years I went hy my- 
self on this little trip, and rejoiced greatly therein. 

There is indeed pleasure in looking hack at these 
things and the feelings they inspired ; and I have still 
the pleasure of constant enjoyment, though Hume and 
Cohden bark, and Wise doth pull the string. 

I am staying with — — for a few days previous to 
my return to Sarawak. The time for rapid self-deve- 
lopment has come at last, and soon I must have power 
given me, or take it. How little indeed do those know, 
who carp at a distance at measures, of the evils of a 
state of society, where there is no government and no 
security ! My kind remembrances to Mrs.Templer and 
the young ones, and ever believe me, 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 

P. S. I have not time to read what I have written. 



b3 



10 PRIViCTB LETTEB8 OF 

To 
His Excellency Sir James Brooke 
K C. B. Her Britanic Majesty's Am- 
bassador extraordinary and pleni 
potentiary to Siam &c <&c &c 

The Prince Thonksum 
momfah Yui Chow-Fa- 
Mongkuk has most rejoiced 
for highest honour of acknow- 
ledging the rejoyful receipt 
of the graceful gift or present 
of Great Valued Astronomi 
cal telescope to-gether 
its implements & standing 
round table & with three 
notes from His Most cele 
brated Excellency Sir 
James Brooke. K. C. B. 
Her Britanic Majesty's 
Ambassador extraordinary 
plenipotentiary to Siam 
through the care or receipt of 
his dear genuant cousin 
His Honour " Bhun Phranai 
waiwosnarth " & his intim- 
ate friend James Hayes Esq'® 
on 27*^ September 1850. 
9-o'clock P. M. of Astronomi 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 11 

cal day & begs return most 
Sincere thanks & gratefulness 
of his mind to His Excellency's 
grace & begs also to assure 
his Excellency that his will 

Ey 

meet perhaps with his more 
respect at the hand of 
his firiend Honourable Lieu- 
tenant Colonel William 
John Butterworth C. B. 
on his E* return to Sii^ 
-apore or after considerable 
while on future 

These lines were 

his trifling Manuscript 

for being instead of 

his face & his hand 

to visit & welcome 

His Ey Sir J. Brooke K.C.B. 

with his highest compli 

ment 



wat Pawamivies 
Tuesday night* 



* The above is the exact copy of the literary cariosity alluded to 
by Sir J. Brooke, and is no mean specimen of the educational attain- 
ments of one of the now reigning kings of Slam. 



12 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 



No. 131. 
John C. Temfler, Esq. 

Singapore, October 11, 1850. 

Mir DEAR Jack, 

In my hurried letter by the last mail, I told 
you that I was, in 1843, auxious to find support from 
any quarter, excepting from a foreign nation ; and my 
correspondence, if published at full length, instead 
of being garbled, would prove, not only this, but a 
great deal more; and would show that the light 
expressions quoted, refer to real objects, worthy of 
attention, and not to any personal views. Thus ^^ the 
orators dinging it into the long ears of the public," 
refers, I am certain, either to the sufierings of the 
Dyaks, or to the slavery carried on by the pirates, and, 
in like manner, " philanthropy being in fashion," refers 
to the same crimes meeting with sympathy in Africa, 
and not in Borneo. You may safely challenge the pro- 
duction of the correspondence. 

In proposing a company, in 1843, when ruin stared 
me in the face — when I saw the probability of ruin 
coming once more upon the people of Sarawak^ unless 
I could find support — ^when I was disbursing large 
sums from my private fortune, to establish security and 
government, was it much to ask to be governor under 



SIB JAMSS BBOOKE, £.03. 13 

a company ? For a man who had laid out 10,0007.9 
was it much to ask, a few shares in the undertaking. 
Was this a " golden dream? *' Was this aiming to 
he a second Arkwright ? Was this likely to make me 
one of the richest commoners in England ? Is there 
anything in the plan injurious to the best interests' of 
Sarawak, or the prosperity of its inhabitants ? 

These things are to be considered ; and considered 
fairly^ there is no man of candid judgment who will 
condemn me ; circumstances, however, change rapidly, 
in a country situated like Sarawak. In 1843, a com- 
pany would have saved Sarawak, from what I considered 
impending rain, and a company at all times, if properly 
managed, would have done all that I could do, and 
more. There was, however, danger in the experiment 
in 1843, but it was a danger, that I would have faced 
to avoid a greater danger ; in 1845, the pressure had 
passed away, order had been restored, the people 
were happy, symptoms of advancement had shown 
themselves, and I felt that Sarawak would do better 
without assistance from a government or a company. 
When Mr. Wise's plans were developed, I saw at 
once (and any one else may see) the peril to Sarawak, 
the temptation to myself — the " golden prize '^ to be 
gained by a worship of the golden calf. I saw all this, 
and I rejected it ; though there is little doubt that the 
plan was well laid, and that, with my participation, 



14 PBIVIXB UOTEfiS OF 

and my popnlaritj, a large sum might hare been 
shared between us. 

« • « « « 

Let me now turn to what is called my trading affidrs. 

Ist. It is fairly to be admitted, that I did trade 
before I entered the government service; but it is 
fiilse to say, that I used my position to advance that 
trade, for, on the contrary^ I declared all trade free, 
with the exception of antimony, reserved as revenue, 
and opium, which was held for the same purpose. 

How did I trade, however ? I who do not know 
how to keep an ordinary ledger account— >who boggle 
over the multiplication table — to whom is denied the 
faculty of figures — I who never kept an account of 
private expenditure, and would rather &ce a row of 
soldiers than a row of figures — ^how did I trade? 
Why, by letting a gentleman do everything for me, 
and supplying the money when it was wanted ! 

Thus all my trade — all my revenue— all my means 
in Sarawak, did not pay the current expenses, and 
year by year I drew on my private fortune to support 
the country. This lasted till about 1845, and may be 
shown any day. 

In 1846, the antimony and opium were leased, and 
the revenue of Sarawak amounted to 2500Z. from these ' 
sources, and about 5007. (or less) from other sources. 
All the expenses of the establishment, and all the 



SIB JAHE9 BBOOEE, K.C.B. 16 

inddental expenses are, and were defirayed from this 
sum ; and I have not taxed the people to increaae my 
means: even Mr. Hume's management would not 
make this a profitable transaction, unless by increaaed 
taxation. 

I can only say then, that I have laid out a large 
sum of money to raise Sarawak, and now it is raised 
to' the point of security for life and property — ^to con- 
fidence and increasing trade — I will not ask even mine 
own, at the expense of the inhabitants. I have always 
been in straitened circumstances, always struggling 
against pecuniary difficulties, and always reducing 
expenditure, rather than increasing taxation. 

In 1846, the mines, &c., were leased, and fr^m 
that time to this, I have never traded indirectly, as 
before, but derived the revenue as I have exjdained. 

Mr. Hume himself, however, would laugh if he 
knew the amount of trade, independently of the two 
legitimate sources of revenue, antimony and opium. 

Mr. Wise's schemes were different ; but I do declare, 
in the paper I signed* at his urgent request, there was 
no intention or mention of partnership — ^itwas with the 
view of recompensing an active agent, though I laughed 
at the idea of profits accruing. When I knew that 
these profits were a golden prize, I laughed again, and 
refused it. 

« See ante, No. 92. 



16 PBIVATE LETTIfiBS OF 

I have thus touched upon points more or less known 
to you before, and I could write a small folio, were I 
to detail the rise and progress of Sarawak. Sarawak 
is now a large town, containing at least twelve thousand 
inhabitants. The Dyaks amount to twelve thousand 
or fifteen thousand more, the Chinese to six thousand, 
and the other population of Malays at Limdu, and 
along the coast, to some three thousand or four 
thousand. And yet the country is quiet— our crimes 
are not numerous, and the general spirit of the popula- 
tion is good, and highly in favour of the government 
If any man would compare the state of things in 
Sarawak, with that in any other river, he would not 
doubt of the good done — of the great advancement of 
commerce, if the measures applied at Sarawak were 
applied to the other localities — and of the blessings of 
government and security. Samarahan is so close to 
Sarawak, that it is moderately prosperous — ^Sadong is 
in a wretched state, from the imbecility and rapacity 
of its native rulers (Datus). I cannot interfere, though 
Malay and Dyak population are imploring me to do 
so; and the Brane government cannot interfere, or if 
it did interfere, it would make matters worse. I say 
cannot, because their oppression, added to what is now 
inflicted, would drive the people desperate. Thus a 
noble river, quite as fine as Sarawak, is without 
government and without security, and as it is with 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 17 

Sadong, SO it is with numerous other rivers — there is 
no government — no security — and, consequently, no 
trade. 

I am sick, my dear Jack, of this vulgar outcry, 
raised by vulgar men — I care little for men's opinions, 
and it only afiects me, so long as I strive to advance the 
interests of Cfwr country : but if I returned to Sarawak, 
I should be at peace with myself, and with those 
around me, though all the abuse of England was 
showered upon me. And so, farewell, my dear friend ; 
pu shall hear again, as soon as I reach Sarawak, 
where I propose staying until the end of December, 
for I [must establish the Serebas in good intentions, 
and watch Sakarran and Kanowit. I long likewise to 
see the Kayans^ amongst whom I trust to do good^ and 
before my next, I must get to Sulu. My paper is ex- 
hausted. 

Believe me. 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 

P. S. If Sarawak affairs go on right, and I am 
moderately at ease about money matters, I think of 
coming home in the spring of 1852. 

I shall take Rose Cottage — tell Mrs. Crofks so. 



18 PRIVATE LETTERS OP 

No. 132. 
Rev« Richard Coxe. 

Singapore, October 16, 1850. 

Mt dear Dick, 

I HAVE not heard firom you for some time, and 
being in Siam, I have been unable to write. My 
mission was a dead failure, as the Siamese are as hos- 
tile, and as opposed to Europeans, as any people can 
well be. I had a very trying time of it, and altogether 
got out of an unpleasant and critical position, withbut 
loss of national or individual credit ; although I was 
sore tempted, and my temper sorely tried. You may 
fancy how bad it was, when I mention, that I secluded 
myself, and never took or breathed the fresh air of 
heaven, during a long month of my stay. This was 
a defensive measure, to avoid all chance of insult, and 
that inevitable lowering in public estimation, which 
these arrogant and semi-barbarous people, always 
attempt with Europeans. In short, I am convinced 
that there is no earnestness in our eastern policy — ^it is 
nothing but a slipshod expediency, which we shall 
some day rue ; for it will force us into strong measures, 
when the cup of insult and humiliation has been drained 
to the dregs. I would be just, but commanding. I 
would use the power we undoubtedly possess, to amend 
native governments, whose existence is a prolonged 



SIR JAMES 6B00EE, K.O.B. 19 

cruelty to mankind, and a shadow to us, at which we 
start. 

Glad am I to get away and to r^nm to Sarawak^ 
where we have no insolent nobles, and no despotic 
monarch. I heard only yesterday, when ererything 
was getting on well, and our population greatly increas- 
ing ; fiye thousand Chinese have recently immigrated^ 
and we may expect more to follow ; though whether it 
be desirable that they should do so, I am not quite 
sure. Labuan is likewise healthy and quiet, and all 
the folks there are now at peace one with another. 
You will have read, I doubt not, with great interest, 
the debates in the House of Commons, relating to 
my public and private affairs. The majority of one 
h\uKired and forty, was the largest of the session, and 
my friends write me that the triumph on our part, and 
liie defeat on the other side were complete. 

Some have thought, who are away from the scene of 
action, that it would have been better not to have 
brought Mr. Wise to the light ; but without ddng this, 
the motive power could not be exposed. I hope 
you will make a point, whenever you go to London, 
to see my friend Templer ; for, putting myself out of 
the question, you will be much pleased with him. I 
have corresponded with him regularly and fully, ever 
since I left England, and he has fortunately kept all my 
letters. There are likewise some letters to Mr. Wiise 



20 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

himself, some to Keppel, and some to others* Templer 
will now publish all these^ and it will be evident what 
my motives have been, and whether I have ever sought 
any selfish advantage, in what I have undertaken ; io 
fact, being 10,000/. minus in raising this country to ita 
present happy condition — often with pecuniary ruin 
staring me in the face> and always m pecuniary diffi- 
culties, from the expenditure I could not avoid — I am 
told that I have been speculating selfishly. However, 
it is no use writing what you will see in a book ; but I 
beg you to remark how the enemy have been beaten 
from pillar to post, shifting their ground, as fresh facts 
have been brought forward, and now, they are fighting 
a defensive battle. 

I should have believed it impossible, when younge^, 
that I could have borne, to be held up as a mark for 
public defamation and obloquy ; but there is a stem 
self-reliance in innocence, which shields us fi*om the 
storm, and, in my case, my compassion for the authors 
of all these &lsehoods, is tinged with a touch of un* 
christian contempt My character is no longer to be 
lost or lowered in public ; but how it may fare with my 
purse, is another matter, 

I have nothing more to add, as there is never any 
news in this dull place, and if there was, you would 
not be interested in it. I am thinking of coming home 
in the early paft of 1852. I need a freezing,, to set 



SIR JAMES BBOOEE, E.C.6. 21 

me up constitutionally, and I need relaxation to shake 
off the mental anxieties, which have sore beset me, since 
I returned here. I trust, therefore, my dear friend, 
tiiat we shall meet, and that you will continue to write 
to me from time to time. 

Ever yours, 

Sincerely and aflfectionately, 
J. Bbooee. 



No. 133. 
Mrs. Beknett.* 

J Singapore, October 21, 1850. 

Mt dear Martha, 

I WROTE to my sister by the last mail, to make 
arrangements for your leaving her, and setting up 
comfortably in a home of your own. You know well 
how grateful I am to you, for your kind attention to my 
mother, and I hope if I can add anything more, to 
make you comfortable, that you will let me know. Be 
assured I always take a sincere interest in your welfare* 
and will advance it to the best of my power ; but I am 
so far off, and have so much to do, that I cannot look 

* The servant of Mrs. Brooke, so often mentioned in the letters 
to her, and for whom Sir James Brooke had made a provision for 
life. 



22 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

after these matters, unless I am reminded of ihem. It 
will please me much at all times to hear of your well- 
being, and that rest and quiet have improved your 
health. I hope ioo to see you again in a year or two, 
when I propose coming home. 
Believe me, 

My dear Martha, 

Your sincerely and obliged, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 134. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Sarawak, Oetober 26, 1850. 

My dear Jack, 

I ARRIVED yesterday, rejoiced to be once again 
in my own country. Without all is quiet, within highly 
prosperous. M^Dougall's church is a great feature 
in the scene. The Chinese population is greatly in- 
creased, and the trade this year will exceed ten thou- 
sand tons. The jungle is fitst receding. We have now 
our Arabs to take a canter on, and in another year I 
hope to have a road, between my taim and the town, a 
distance of seven or eight miles. 

I go up the river in a few days, to settle matters 
with the Chinese. 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 23 

In short, my dear Jack, I never dreamed of Sara- 
wak ever advancing so far in my lifetime, and thought, 
from the slow progress of good government at first, 
that it was to be always as dow ; but now that ccmfi- 
dence has been acquired, there is a great impulse to 
trade. 

Farewell : I write only in the greatest haste, to let 
you know of my safe return. 

Ever your afieciionate friend, 

J, Brooke. 



No. 135. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Sarawak, November S, 1850. 

My dear Jack, 

I WRITE a few lines, in case the next oppor- 
tunity should be too late for the December mail from 
Singapore. I returned yesterday from the Quop, 
where I paid a visit to some Dyak tribes. The seeds 
of improvement are now apparent everywhere, and 
though there be a few and trivial defects, the con- 
dition of these once miserable tribes, is one of comfort 
and plenty. They have reached the summit of Dyak 
notions of comfort, and the next step is to imbue them 
with notions higher than any they yet have had. To- 



24 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

morrow I go up the mam riyer, to the Chinese settle- 
ment, in order to arrange the future management with 
the gold-working Company, and to bring down as 
many of the new comers as I can, to locate them here 
and at Sundu. 

By forming two or three nuclei in proper situations, 
the Chinese will increase, and yet continue under con- 
trol. The difficulty at Sambas is, their having been 
allowed to congregate and rule, in a place difficult of 
access. At the close of the year, I will send you our 
export and import account. The tonnage will be at 
least ten thousand tons, mostly under the English flag. 
We, yesterday, had five vessels in the river, viz., a 
barque, a brig, two schooners, and a tope. 

I am not anxiou sto revert to Mr. Wise ; but I may 
mention what I have recently done, and you can judge 
whether it will be of any use bringing it forward, 
though probably not. 

In the Singapore ^^ Straits Times," and directly after- 
wards in the ^' Daily News," appeared some scandalous 
and positive statements respecting my expedition up 
the Kaluka river, in March ot April, 1849.* I had, 
it was said, allowed a captive woman to be led away 
into slavery, permitted the murder of a boat's crew, 
after they were made prisoners, murdered a toothless 

* See the correspondence with the Smgapore anthorilies on this 
subject, post, Nos. 148 and 149. 



8IK JAMES BBOOEE, E.C.B. 26 

old num^ who was unarmed, and invaded the peaceful 
haunts of native commerce. All these positive state- 
ments were afterwards dropped, but I kept my atten- 
tion fixed on them, because they could only have been 
derived, from within a small circle of persons, or else 
must have been invented by the enemy. Having some 
grounds for the proceeding, I brought Mr. Miller,* 
the surgeon of the " Nemesis," to a Court of Inquiry, 
upon which trial, he and every gun-room officer of the 
" Nemesis " disclaimed any knowledge whatever of 
these statements. Subsequently, Captain Wallage 
pledged me his honour, in writing, for himself and the 
engineers of the steamer, that they were not the 
authors, nor acquainted with them ; and lastly, every 
white person in Sarawak made affidavit of the same. 
Therefore there is now proo^ that these statements 
were not originated by any person present up the Ka- 
luka river, unless he was a common seaman, and 
further, that they did not originate with any European 
(unless a common seaman) within three hundred miles 
of the scene of action. From whence then did the 
"Straits Times" obtain this information? That a 
native should furnish it, is a preposterous supposition ; 
ergo^ it must have been obtained, from a man before the 
mast, or have been invented. These are the original 

* See Parliamentary Papers, entitled Dr. Miller, 11th May 18 52, 
where all the details of this case are given. 

VOL. UL q 



26 PBIVATB LETTERS OF 

slanders which heralded the rest I hare no doubt, 
however, that there are honest men enough, who have 
been misled, to bring the truth ultimately to light, of 
the steps taken to cause the outcry. 

Adieu, my dear Jack. With kind regards to your 
wife. 

Believe me, ever, 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 

The documents above referred to are all in my 
hands. 



No. 136. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Sarawak, December 7, 1850. 

My DEAR Jack, 

I HAVE had a fresh accession of fever, from 
which I have partially rallied, but the great prostration 
of strength, warns me of the consequences of longer de* 
laying to seek relief from a total change of climate. I 
obey the dictates of prudence the more readily, as here 
I am useless, and unable to do what I am obliged to 
attempt 

In February, therefore, I have resolved to leave 
Singapore for Malta, and thence, travelling via Naples, 
Rome, Florence, and Milan, to Geneva. At Greneva I 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 27 

shall halt ; and have written to the Johnsons to join me 
there. If nothing occurs to accelerate my motions, I 
shall be in England in July or August, and thus be 
able to see much of you. I hare resolved to live at 
Greenwich. I want a home of my own ; I hate 
London, and your society decides me in &vour of the 
old place. I could not, however, live comfortably any- 
where but at Rose Cottage, if it is to be had ; and I 
know old Mrs. Crofts will take care of me. I will 
take the cottage for a year, from the 1st August to 
1st September or 1st June ; and I shall desire my 
servant Channon to lodge my traps, which he will 
carry home direct, a pledge to Mrs. Crofts for my 
appearance. I fiilly authorize you, therefore, to take 
Rose Cottage. If that is not to be had, I will wait till 
I can choose another. Dear Jack, we will have many 
a yam yet, in spite of our enemies ; and I can tell you 
ten thousand things by word of mouth which it is im- 
possible to explain in writing ; only pray don't expect 
me to do lion again, the work is too hard, and does 
not pay at the price. My love to Mrs. Templer, and 
all your party, and believe me ever, 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 



c2 



28 PRIVATE LETl^RS OF 



No. 137. 
John C. Temfler, Esq. 

Labuan, December 21 » 1850. 

My dear Jack, 

A MERRY Christmas, and a happy new year to 

you. I arrived at this place three days ago, weak and 

sickly after a rough passage ; but on the whole I am 

better, or at any rate, not worse. I feel, however, 

that the mental exertion of business destroys me, and 

I must fly from it, as soon as I can. It is, indeed, 

miserable to be the witness of human suffering, such 

as the poor M units of Brune are now exposed to ; to 

feel the power of being able to relieve this misery, 

and to know that forms and shadows prevent one 

doing so. 

This is only, however, to say that I trust to your 

advice, and Cameron's, to hurry me, if there be any 

advantage to be gained. I wish you to exert this 

privilege, without consideration for my comfort or health. 

I feel that a cool climate will set me up quickly, and, 

at any rate, no personal consideration shall prevent my 

obeying your summons. 

• • • • • 

The objects of the Eastern Archipelago Company I 
approve. The company as constituted, or rather the 



Sm JAMES BBOOEE, K.CB. 29 

bubble called a company, is an imposition on Govern- 
ment and the public. Mr. Burns has been at his 
txicks in the Barram River. I write this, on the mere 
chance of catching the January mail ; how I wish it 
was February I I am an overworked horse. 
Ever, dear Jack, 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 

Let Mr. Cameron know about me, as I have not 
written to my own family, and they will be glad to 
hear. 



No. 138. 
Rev. F. M'Dougall. 

Singapore, January 28, 1851. 

Mt deab M^Douoall, 

I HAVE before expressed to you my wish, that 
the labourers employed in the mission should be in- 
creased, so as to embrace the more distant rivers, where 
there is a large Dyak population. I cannot, however, 
leave this part of the world, without letting you know 
my strong opinion, as to the necessity of caution in all 
your proceedings. In the prosecution of the best course, 
tiiere are dangers to be avoided ; and great and pro- 
mising, as I consider the field of missionary labour in 



30 PRIVATE LETTERS OP 

Kanowit and Sakarran, and amongst the Dyaks gene- 
rally, yet I do not hesitate to say that great pradence 
with forbearance will be required to cultivate this field 
with success, and to crown the exertions of the church, 
with a substantial success in due time. There is a 
proper season to speak; and I must say that any 
measures, that tend to satisfy the craving at home for 
spurious and speedy results, by showing a list of con- 
verts monthly and yearly, should be discouraged and 
suppressed. It is building the superstructure on a 
foundation of sand ; it would be permanently injurious 
to the ultimate object of the mission, and it would be 
dangerous to the public peace. The Dyak population 
must be moved in the mass ; and, as a rule, the jealousy 
of the Mahomedan population must not be roused. 
We have now toleration, charity, and peace, and these 
blessings must not be risked, by the indiscreet zeal of 
Christian men, strong to introduce their faith amongst 
others. 

You are aware of this danger from experience. You 
know that I speak only the words of sober reason, 
when I say that, let the bigotry of Islam be once 
aroused, the mission will not succeed^ and wars and 
bloodshed may attend our attempt to introduce Chris- 
tianity. Zeal begets controversy ; controversy begets 
heat and strife ; and thus every evil passion accrues 
from an indiscreet attempt to convert our brother men. 



SIB 3AWSB BUOQKB, E^CB. 31 

and by rashly interfering with opinions (however wrong 
in themselves) sacred and dear to their professors. 

History ; the state of religious opinion in England ; 
and above all, our local happiness and experience, warn 
us to guard against danger, and to establish some 
authority to prevent its arising. 

The Government, of course, is the ultimate judge 
of what concerns the safety of the country, or is likely 
to disturb the public peace ; but there ought to be 
some power in the church itself, to give unity of design 
and execution ; and to prevent, and check the slightest 
tendency towards the evil I have mentioned. How is 
this to be done? 

Have you any ecclesiastical authority to control and 
to direct other clergymen ? If you have not, and I do 
not perceive how you can have, what objection could 
there be, to making you the Bishop of Sarawak ? There 
would be no objection on my part ; and I consider, 
certainly, that some authority within the church itself 
is necessary to control the clergy ; and to offer to the 
Government a responsible person, with whom it could 
treat, and in whom it could confide. The details I 
must leave with you ; but I have thus freely, though 
somewhat hurriedly, expressed my own opinions, and 
beg you will consider them, and impress them, on all 
concerned. My apprehensions of divided councils, and 
a controversial crusade, may be ill-founded, but it is 



32 PBIVATE LETTEBS OF 

well to guard against every danger, where the happi- 
ness of so many thousands is concerned, and where (in 
my opinion) a wrong step may impede the prospect of 
diffusing our reKgion. 

Farewell : may peace and goodwill be with you in 
Sarawak ; and if God so wills, I shall once more 
return. 

Yours, my dear M^Dougall, 

Very sincerely, 
J. Brooke. 



No. 189. 

40HN C. T£MPLER,.£6Q. 

Point de Galle, February 15, 1851. 
My dear Jack, 

I SEND through you a full and fair account of 
Mr. Napier's administration, the inquiry on him, and his 
dismissal. There could not have been a simpler or 
more straightforward public duty, or one more em- 
barrassing or painful.* 

Mr. Napier is likewise led and advised by Mr. Woods, 
anewspaper editor, who is the calumniator^ not only of 

* This refers to the Lieatenant^ovemor of Labnan, who had 
been dismissed from the ezecation of his office by ^ James Brooke, 
and Earl Grey confirmed Sir James's decision. 



SIB JAMES BBOOKE, E.O.B. 33 

myself, but of all the officers engaged. The exalta- 
tion of this man to a public situation, has drawn a 
remonstrance in no measured terms from me on moral 
grounds. I will send the papers if I have time to you 
by this mail.* 

I am moved by a just indignation ; and if Grovem- 
ment does not support me, I shall act independently, 
for my blood being up, I shall not shrink, and I am 
not to be cowed by any earthly considerations, or 
ruled by a base expediency. 

Yet, dear Jack, lam quite good-tempered about it, 
because I am right, or at any rate convinced that I 
am right, which is as much as a poor mortal man can 

say in this world. The business will end in 

smoke, or in disgrace to those who have concocted it. 

Send or take the letters to withrat delay. 

God bless you, ever yours, 
J. Brooke. 

« See these letters, Nos. 148, 149. 



c3 



34 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 



CHAPTER II. 

February 22, 1851, to April 17, 1851. 



No. 140. 
John C. Templeb, Esq. 

Steam Packet *' Hmdostan/' three days from Aden, 
^ February 22, 1851. 

My dear Jack, 

I have already by this mail, forwarded to you 
three large packets, and the present one is to be for 
public, miscellaneous, and my private letter. There 
is always a last word to say on the points under dis- 
cussion, so as to guard each, from every possible 
chance of misconstruction. In the first place, there- 
fore, it may in Napiers case be urged that he was 
burdened by mani/ duties, and therefore failed in some. 
Were it so, it would not afiect the case ; but it was 
not so, as the accounts sent home, will show how little 
there was to do in that way, and how it was done, and 



SIR JAIIES BROOKE, K.C.B. S5 

the enclosure No. 1 is the sum total of judicial cases 
for the year 1849 ; and besides this, the duty was very 
light. Mr. Scott now does the same duties added to 
his laborious office of Surveyor-General, and is far 
from complaining. 

The Siam mission may be brought up, and on this 
point it may be boldly aflSrmed, that the propositions 
made were just and moderate; and that I strictly 
obeyed my instructions, in avoiding all ground of dis- 
pute; that I was a favourite personally with the Siamese, 
though I was urdfendinff, and that the English and 
American inhabitants fully approved of every step I 
took. If the enemy accuse me of delay in proceeding 
on the mission, answer, that when I first received the 
appointment, it was physically impossible that I could 
undertake the duty, and had I been able to do so, 1 
could not have procured a vessel of war, as Admiral 
Austen was expected, and the commanding o£Scer 
would not have felt authorized to detach vessels, under 
the circumstances on a distant, and perhaps, prolonged, 
mission. When I returned from Penang (which I 
did before I ought to have done), I waited at Singa- 
pore, ready at any hour to embark, until the Admiral's 
arrangements were completed. No blame is, however, 
to be implied, as the disposition of the squadron, ren- 
dered it impossible for the new commander-in-chief 
to arrange it otherwise. You are aware likewise that 



36 PRIVATB LETTERS OF 

I have erected a fort at Sakarran, and that I hate 
recently placed Mr. Brereton in charge of it. This 
step may be questioned in various ways. The answer 
is» that the fort is necessary to prevent the Sakarrans 
from issuing forth on piratical expeditions, and ad-* 
viseable likewise, to check the feuds which have arisen 
in consequence of these piratical expeditions. It is 
a measure reported to H.M. Government, approved of 
by the better-disposed Malays and Dyaks of Sakarran, 
and of the Batong Lupar, pleasing likewise to the 
Sultan of Borneo and his government, which for the 
last fifty or seventy years have lost all power and control 
over the Batong Lupar and Sakarran — ^and this 
nucleus of a fort will create a trade in noble rivers, 
and gradually, by afibrding protection to those within 
and without, and curbing the system of retaliation, 
introduce peace, and advance commerce. If Brereton's 
appointment is called in question, urge that he is the 
fittest person for it, that I have no native who will go, 
on whom I can rely; that Brereton has small inde- 
pendent means, and the revenue he can derive from the 
river, will not more than cover (if it will do that) the 
expenses which must be met I make nothing either 
by Sakarran, Serebas, or any river ; and though the 
government of Borneo has long ceased to exercise the 
functions, or perform the duties of government, yet 
when these rivers are more developed, it will be time 



Sm JAMES BBOO&E, K.C.B. 37 

SO to apportion the revenue, as to establish security, 
and a strong and just local rule, and the claims of the 
native state may then be fairly considered, with refer- 
ence to the more important objects of general peace 
and the good of the people. What is said of Sakarran, 
may with equal truth be said of Rejang. There the 
proposal of a fort, and the establishment of a just 
gpyemment is not only pleasing to the Dyaks, but 
Eum Nipa, the Kayan chief, has come from the in- 
terior, to help in building it ; and has agreed that if I 
govern he will come down below the rapids of the 
Rejang, for the greater convenience of trade. We have 
now established firm relations with the Eayans of the 
Barram, and have exchanged friendly letters with the 
Kinneah chiefs (a name imknown before), in the 
interior of that noble river. Labuan is struggling 
through its diflSculties, kept back by the dilatory 
operations of the company, yet possessing substantial 
elements of success. The Dusans of the north are now 
guided by our councils; — the Lanoons controlled; — 
the city of Brune from want of all internal government, 
and security of person and property, is gradually dis- 
solving. The results of good government are every- 
where apparent, and known to all ; and I may truly say 
that a course of policy mixed, as I have always mixed 
it, of mercy and severity, has prevented the eflusion of 
blood ; and the bloodshed has been the blood of the 



3 8 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 

guilty and not of the innocent At this moment, when 
I am broken down by sickness and exertion, the 
measures I have pursued are eminently successful, and 
their development in their infancy. The man, perse- 
cuted in his own country, is respected and loved in 
Borneo, and I may say throughout the Archipelago. 
And what assistance have I had? A weak and 
vacillating course has been pursued for thirty years 
past, and will be pursued stilL There are no systematic 
measures taken, no power granted, no real confidence 
manifested in myself, or any one else — ^no efficient sup- 
port given. I feel, I know instinctively, that the war 
of words will supersede all the benefits of action ; that 
supineness and indifference to distant spheres, render 
England unfit to carry out a consistent course of policy 
in the East. The age of noble confidence is gone, and 
the bagman distrust of Manchester has taken its place 
— yet, whilst I live, will I not turn my hand from the 
plough ; nor do I wish to complain. There is a moral 
might developed in a man's soul, by persecution in a 
right cause, which is superior to fortune's gifts, or 
earthly treasure. There is a self-reliance, and a re- 
liance on a good cause, which raises us above the 
world's opinion and men's judgment I trust I am 
learning something of this, and I can sincerely say that 
beyond a just indignation, I entertain no vindictive 
feeling towards those who are pleased to be my enemies. 



SIB JAMES BBOOKE, EX.B. 39 

They may injure me in prospects and in peace ; but 
they cannot deprive me of the consciousness of right, 
— ^the love of my friends — ^the attachment and respect 
of the native communities — or the gratification of duty 
done. They cannot reduce me to their own level of 
feeling, or of language. That I have faults enough, 
heaven knows. I have a fixedness of purpose, and a 
devotion in any cause I embrace, so unfortunately mixed 
up with a lightness of temper, and a scoffing playful- 
ness, and an abhorrence of cant, that the solemn and 
silly will never comprehend my character, and the sus- 
picious and worldly never will trust, and always will 
abuse me. So be it. The love of pleasing the multi- 
tude is a base token of a base nature. I must be con- 
tent, my dear Jack, with my friends, and d n 

the rest of the world — ^the chosen to me, I am content 
to live with, and wish not to live without. Poor, poor 
Jem I how often do I think of him, and your love of his 
memory is worthy of you and of him. He had many 
good and rare qualities, all of which would have been 
refined by age ; but it would please you to listen, as I 
have listened lately, to his praises from Earl and others. 
I think I have now mentioned every point which it is 
necessary for you to know ; and I do not lay down any 
course of action, for you know far better than I do my- 
self, what is proper to be done. Remember, above all 
things, that I am ready to come home at any time to 



40 FRnrATE LETTERS OF 

{ace my enemieSy if it be necessary ; but I do not desire 
to mix myself up in these wordy contentioDSy unless it 
be advisable. I often think what could have been the 
end, had I not had you to advocate my cause» and to 
arrange a defence against this unworthy and malignant 
persecution. I should have been condemned unheard, 
— ^too proud to volunteer a defence, and too careless, 
and too ignorant, to seek the means necessary for re* 
butting false accusations. And this would have been 
justice I I often ask myself how can these men, Hume 
and Cobden, reconcile it before Ood, or to their own 
consciences, to denounce an absent man, to condemn a 
man imheard— and this is what they call fair play and 
manly English feeling; they preach of peace, whilst 
they banish charity from the earth. 

I express what I feel, a warm gratitude to those who 
have defended me ; who have taken the trouble to in- 
quire into the truth, and to expose the feilsehood; 
amongst these prominently are Henry Drummond, and 

, and your friends and ; but is it not 

strange that I have no Government defender, not one 
influential ministerial voice in the House of Commons 
to support my reputation,* and to avow the approbation 
of ministers. Am I right, dear Jack, in feeling hurt 
at this ? in regarding it as less than my due, and be- 
neath their dignity ? In a portion more responsible^ 
* ThiB was bel(>re the Sessioii of 1851. 



SIB JAMES BBOOEE^ E.C.B. 41 

perhaps^ than any other under the Crown, as being 
solely dependent on my ovm judgment^ and beyond the 
reach of ministerial assistance, or advice to guide or 
rule, am I to be left half disowned ? or is it the support 
which Government finds from Cobden and his party 
tiiat cools its zeal, and renders it unrighteously cau- 
tious? 

All these things have struck me much, and as I shall 
stay at Malta till I receive an answer to this letter, 
pray (however shortly) tell me am I right or not ? I 
feel quite independent. I never, from nature, can play 
a truckling or expedient game. I am, I trust, not sel- 
fish enough to turn Sarawak into a mere means of per- 
sonal exaltation. I have power and influence not to be 
appreciated at a distance, and will never fritter it away 
by engaging in any paltry antagonism with a company, 
or rival governor, or any one else, whom Government 
may permit or encourage to oppose a course of policy, 
which depends on a systematic and dignified action and 
support. My first duty is to secure the happiness of 
Sarawak, and to place it in a situation of permanent 
security and independence. This done, the rest is but 
"leather or prunella." My horse, my gun, and books, 
are a stock of content and employment enough, and if 
there be some disappointment left, it is but the dregs 
of a cup which every mortal man must drink ere he die. 
However, these subjects are for our cool and serious 



42 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 

deliberation, when we meet, and I shall not act hastily 
without your advice ; though my natural temperament, 
my habits, my feelings, my appreciation of indepen- 
dence, all conspire to urge me to cast off the tranunels 
of office, and all the expedient shifts which office now 
requires, but requires in vain from me. You will see 
with what vivacity and bitterness I have attacked the 
Court at Singapore. I would no more blink a public 
principle for private convenience, than I would sell 
Sarawak to Mr. Wise's company to be made a mercan- 
tile bubble of. 

I stay, as I before told you, for an answer to my 
letter, and an acknowledgment of my packets in Malta. 
After that, if you give me leave, I proceed to Naples, 
Rome, Leghorn, Genoa, by sea ; then to Milan, over 
the Simplon, to Switzerland, where I wish to recruit. I 
have written to the Johnsons to come and join me. Is 
there any just impediment to Mrs. Templer and 
the children, led by yourself, coming to the Lrcman 
Lake? I only mention this, but otherwise I should 
like much to join you during a portion at least of your 
holidays. At Bridport or where ? I shall call myself 
Smith, John Smith, at your service. Pray what news 
do you intend to send me about Rose Cottage ? Am 
I to get it, and at a moderate rent ? If I cannot get 
Rose Cottage, I shall take some other small house 
in your vicinity, and a thorough-bred steed, picked up 



SIB JAMES BBOOEE, K.G.B. 4S 

at Tattersall's, will enable me to jog quietly to 
chambers, between Prior and yom^elf. Charlie Grant 
comes home with me, and Charlie Johnson I hope will 
be at home, and I have my servant Channon. If 
I remember right, Rose Cottage has three bedrooms, 
and as the two Charlies will not be often there 
together, we shall manage. 

We are now getting on to Aden, and I shall 
close this last packet and write you a short note, 
to inform you of my arrival in Malta. It may be 
that your letters, or the Government may induce me to 
come on. 

My kind love to all the party; I hope soon to 
be amongst you all, and to be living a quiet life, far 
from crowds, and public feasts, or public spouting. 
Farewell, my dear friend, and believe me 

Your sincere and affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 

I enclose my correspondence with the President 
of the United States and the American envoy. I sent 

the President's letter to Lord , who, thinking it a 

public matter, referred it to the Foreign Office, but I do 
not think it a question, in which the English Govern- 
ment have any concern. 

Show whatever papers will interest, to Cameron and 
my uncle. 



44 PRIVATE LEITEBS OP 

No. 141. 
John C. Templeb, Esq. 

Bipoa, approaching Malta, 
March 13, 1851. 

Mt deab Jack, 

I HAVE wonderfully recovered during my pas- 
sage, and feel quite a different man from what I 
did, when I left the East; my only ailment being, 
at present, a cold caught in the climate of Egypt, 
which is as treacherous, as a cold wind and scorching 
sun, can make it 

Our passage has been very agreeable and calm, till 
within the last 24 hours, and we are now struggling 
towards Malta, in half a gale of wind, right in our 
teeth. 

I write this preliminary to our arrival, and I do not 
anticipate that you will order me home. The change 
of ministry will scarcely affect my position, either with 
my friends or my foes, but as far as I am personally 
concerned, I shall regret any change which removes 

Lord or Lord , for I have always met from 

them every public consideration and private kindness. 

I have sent to you, directed* to ^ four large 

packets, dropped from the saloon of the steamer into 
the mail bag, as we have gone along. 

The first was a fiill and particular account of 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 45 

the affair. The second, relating to piracy. 

The third, the reports and decisions on — — 's case. 
The fourth, my correspondence with the President of 
the United States. 

There are likewise some newspapers, all relating to 
these topics. I saw in the " Home News *' paper, that a 
Parliamentary return was furnished by the India House, 
for military and naval expenses of Labuan, from 1848 
to 1849. The military is correct from 1848, but 
Labuan has never had any separate naval establish- 
ment. The Company's vessels employed there, occa- 
sionally, have been part of the naval squadron employed 
at Labuan, or any other place, or in cruizing, according 
to pleasure, of the Commander-in-Chief No settle- 
ment, therefore, can in fairness be charged for the 
naval expenses, which come under the general Admiralty 
administration ; and the vessels employed, being avail- 
able for the service of any or every settlement within 
the limits of the East India command. I think it as 
well to mention this, in case an effort is made to 
pervert the simple fact. 

I have written you a long letter, and now only hope 
to hear from you soon ; and if need be, shall write 
from Malta, should there be a letter from you. My 
love to all, my dear Jack, and believe me, 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 



46 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 



No. 142. 
Commander Hosken, R.N. 

Malta, March 27, 1851. 

Mt dear Hosken, 

I have learned, that Commander Daniel of the 
Indian Navy, in reply to a letter addressed to him by 
Mr. Hume, has said, that he neither saw nor heard of 
pirates whilst on the coast of Borneo. 

As it is not the custom of pirates to visit ships of war, 
and as the ^^ Semiramis" was not employed to search 
for pirates, it would have been remarkable if Captain 
Daniel had seen them, or seeing them, had known them 
to be pirates ; but it seems strange that he should 
never have heard of piracy whilst stationed at Labuan ; 
and I can account for this in no other way, than that he 
never troubled himself to make any inquiries on the 
subject, for, being ignorant of the native language, he 
could learn nothing from the ordinary topics of conver- 
sation carried on. 

Will you tell me^ whether, in your opinion, Captain 
Daniel or any other man might not, at any time he took 
the trouble to inquire, have heard of the existence of 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 47 

pirates, and the atrocities they committed on the peace* 
able inhabitants of the coast ? ^ 

I am sorry to give you this trouble, and believe me, 
my dear Hosken, 

Very sincerely yours, 
J. Brooke. 



(Answer.) 

H. M. S. " Banshee," Malta, 
March 27, 1851. 

My dear Sir James, 

I CANNOT understand how it happened that 
Captain Daniel never heard of pirates during the time 
he was stationed at the island of Labuan; he most 
certainly would have heard of several acts of piracy 
on the coast of Borneo, on both sides of the island, 
more particularly on the side towards Sarawak, if he 
had made inquiry. 

The subject of the depredations, committed along 
the coast, was frequently talked of by the oflScers of 
the Government; and it was well known that six 
piratical vessels had stopped at the north end of 
Labuan, to obtain water, a few months before we came 
to the island, in June 1849. 

Believe me, my dear Sir, 
Yours very faithfully, 

James Hosken. 



48 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

• No. 143. 

John C. Templer, Esq. 

Malta, March 24, 1851. 

My dear Jack, 

I AM comfortably established at Dunsford's 
hotel, and am enjoying and benefiting by the charming 
weather, which has succeeded an inclement winter; 
the great folks are very kind and obli^ng, and amongst 
many agreeable persons I have found some old ac- 

acquaintances. Lord and Lady E , Robert , 

formerly of the Colonial-oflSce, and Graves, who has 
been for years employed in the survey of the Mediter- 
ranean, are the principal ones of the number. The 
latter is well known to your brother Harry, and re- 
members him too. I trust Harry is better of his 
awkward accident. He is getting too old for hunting, 
and must leave it for the boys, though your father 
used to hunt at a later time of day. Accidents, how- 
ever, will happen in the best-regulated families, and 
your light weights, in my experience, are more liable 
to them than your fourteen stone men. 

I am, all things considered, remarkably well, but I 
by no means like the cold, nor does it like me. I 
think there is a gouty tendency in my habit, which 
slumbers in the genial temperature of 85", but which 
awakens in cold weather, and shows itself in a nasty 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 49 

cough, from that vulgar region, the stomach.^You may 
rememher how it annoyed me, when last in England, and 
it is always aggravated by good dinners, and strong 
drinks, and late hours. Now it is merely incipient, 
and bids me beware of turtle and claret. I am, how- 
ever, wondrously moderate and feel young, and I ride 
daily for some hours, enjoying the balmy air and bright 
sunshine. During the course of next week I am going 

with Lord in his yacht, to visit Gergenti, in 

Sicily. It is an awkward place to get at in any other 
way, and though I hate sight-seeing, these temples are 
worth the trouble of a land-journey on donkeys, and I 
esteem myself very fortunate to have an opportunity 
of visiting them with so agreeable a party. 

Charlie Johnson is here in the " Terrible," and I 
see as much of him as I can ; but such are the thou- 
sand demands of naval duty, that it is not so much as 
I wish, for he is a great favourite of mine. Charlie 
Grant is fagging away at my long correspondence with 
Colonel Butterworth, which, when completed, shall be 
sent to you. There was, or rather is, in Singapore, the 
editor of a small newspaper. This man has habitually 
been abusing and vilifying all the oflScers, civil, naval, 
and military, employed on the coast of Borneo, not 
with an ordinary, but with an extraordinary abuse, 
accusing us of specific acts of murder. This newspaper 
editor has, from an almost unaccountable weakness, 

VOL. in. D 



50 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

been chosen by Colonel Butterworth to fill two ap- 
pointments in the Court of Singapore. 

It appeared to me something monstrous, for a court 
of judicature to take into its pay, a newspaper editor 
who had made the most shameless and unsupported 
charges against officers in the performance of their 
duties. As the Court did not either accede to my views, 
or justify the appointment, but merely contented itself 
with presuming a man to be fit for office, whom they knew 
was not fit, I addressed them a letter which produced 
the correspondence I will send via Southampton, and 

a copy of which I have also forwarded to Lord , 

and he will probably let the India Board or the Court 
of Directors, or anybody else whom it may concern, 
judge the matter. 

There are many things, my dear Jack, I wish to talk 
to you about, and Downe Hall shall be my abode, as 
you kindly propose in September, or sooner if pos^ble. 

1st. Will the Government place me in a position 
less anomalous than the one I at present hold ? What 
can be a greater one than an independent prince, with, 
I may safely say, unlimited power over five hundred 
miles of coa&t, acting as Consul-general ? 

2nd. Will they back me (morally, not physically) in 
carrying the same government as previously in Sarawak 
to other places ? The government of Brune is dying 
in my hands. The people of numerous tribes desire 



Sm JAMES BROOKE, K.aB. 51 

good goyernment. They have long de facto been in- 
dependent in a great measure of Brun^, and will not 
allow the native rajahs to bully them as of yore. 

I can advance good government, if I have a direct or 
even indirect authority^ and by this means not only 
shall we benefit by increase of commerce, but the mass 
of the native population will benefit too ; we shall 
come in contact with the native tribes of the interior, 
and the defimct rights of the Brune gotemment can 
be attended to, so as to pay it a just tribute from its 
possessions, from which it now gets nothing. 

3rd. Will the Government act consistently and 
strictly against the pirates of the Archipelago? As I 
write, my dear Jack, I long to be with you ; but in 
term time you are a man of business, and only acces- 
able in the evening. 

I am afraid I was hard upon ministers in my last 
letter; they have always been very kind and very con- 
siderate to me ; but in the effort merely to hold their 
own in England, they allow the extremities of the 
empire to get cold. In the East, especially in the 
Hindu-Chinese nations and China, we ought to do 
everything or nothing ; and the outcry on the score of 
humanity, roared forth by Cobden and Sturge, is 
humanity to vicious governments, but not to the mass 
of the people. The more experience I gain, the more 
I despise half-and-half measures. In private life it 

d2 



52 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

leads to the ruin of those who pursue this course, and 
it is no better in public afiairs, though the result is 
not so quickly apparent. We can retrogade or we can 
advance, but we cannot stand still, any more than the 
globe — stillness, is the type of death — motion, of life — 
and whether in the moral or physical world, we can no 
more remain stationary than we can remain asleep all 
our lives. I am sorry to hear I cannot get Rose Cottage ; 
but Mrs. Templer, in her walks, may look out for some 
nice damp, dreary-looking abode, away from the 
haunts of men ; for I hate living in a row, and I like a 
little garden. Is there anything like a small house in 
the Park, or near the Park ? or on Blackheath ? How- 
ever, there is time for all this. So farewell, my dear 
friend ; the Charlies send their love. I hope Mrs. 
Templer and the young ones are well. I was surprised 
to hear Master Jamie rode a pony. I send you some 
other non- business papers, with this very long letter. 
So adieu, with my kind regards to your dear wife, and 
believe me. 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.G.6. 53 

No. 144. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Malta, March 29, 1851. 

My dear Jack, 

I SHOULD not have troubled you again so soon, 
but having learned a move* of the adyersary, I thought 
it as well to counteract it, as you will see by the 
enclosed papers. This negative evidence cannot go 
&T with reasonable men. I have been staying here for 
answers to my letters, and likewise on account of 
Charlie Johnson ; but as the " Terrible " sails in a 
few days, I shall retire from Valetta to Bosquetto, in 
order to get out of the way of the dinner parties, which 
try my lately-amended health, and which I particularly 
dislike ; for to be moderately agreeable, I am obliged 
to take more wine than is good for me; for it is 
wretched work to feel one cannot talk, or talk with 
pain. If the weather be fine, I believe Lord and Lady 

will cross over to Gergenti, in which case I shall 

accompany them. My future movements are not quite 
certain, but I shall keep you well informed in case of 
neecL. 

The weather here is not so agreeable as I could 

* The move referred to, was the address of some parties in Singa- 
]poTe to Mr. Hume, to the effect that they had never heard of the 
piracies of the Serebas and Sakarrans. 



64 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 

wish ; it is changeable^ and the wind is often cold, besides 
which, there is a dryness in the atmosphere which is dis- 
agreeable, however healthy it may be. If you are too 
busy, ask Mrs. Templer to write to me. Farewell, and 

believe me, 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 145. 
Rev. Francis M*Dougall. 

Malta, March 30, 1851. 

My dear M*Dougall, 

It seems natural, that you should hear from 
me at Malta, and for this reason, and because I feel 
inclined^ I write, rather than from any abundance of 
material. Firstly, my health is greatly improved, and 
from the day I left Galle, I began to pick up, aud 
to feel like another creature, which I attribute as 
much to relaxation and change, as to climate. My 
only drawback now, is from the number of dinners 
which I cannot avoid going to, and when out, there 
is no alternative excepting being stupid without wine, 
or agreeable with it. The first burst is passing away, 
and as Charlie Johnson will be off in the " Terrible " 
during the week, I propose returning to Boschetto, for 
greater quiet, and there awaiting my English letters, 
and the next India mail. I shall afterwards go hj 



SIR JAMES BBOOEE, E.O.B. 55 

sea to Naples, Civita Vecchia, Leghorn, and Genoa, 
visiting the principal towns from their respective sea«« 
ports, and making my way to Switzerland about June, 
and to England in August. This is the present pro- 
gramme, but the Hume persecution may take me 
home sooner, should my friends deem it necessary. 
My mind is generally far away from my body, and 
lingers with you all, in Sarawak and Borneo. What 
are cities and temples, to jungles and Dyaks ? and what 
are the knightly remains of Malta, compared to our 
little church ? What is all the rubbish of the past, 
compared to the hopes of the future ? — I am a man of 
one idea— Borneo ; everything else in life, is a little 
snuff, which tickles my nostrils ; or a little sound, or a 
little sight for amusement, but I am not in earnest, in 
anything else. I am not for ministerial crises, saving 
as they touch on Borneo prospects. I hope you are 
all happy, and have a little society and are gay, for I 
don't like solemn people, and I hope Mrs. M'Dougall 
continues strong and well. It would be very agreeable, 
if I escorted out Mrs. Bunyon, and Miss Bunyon, and 
Miss Bickersteth, but if any of them come, I will do 
my best, whether they journey by land or sea, to make 
their voyage agreeable ; and if they leave before I do, 
I will, if you tell me, look out, that they have a better 
passage than yours was. The stick I entrusted to Sir 
(whom you knew as of the " Amazon ") to 



66 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

deliver, according to the direction ; so by this time, I 
trust, Mrs. M^Dougall's mother is leaning on it for 
support How does our school progress ? that is my 
delight, and I often think of the ^' Good night, Sir/' 
which greeted me in my eyening drives. 

Charlie Grrant is writing to St. John. I am going 
to write to Brooke. What is Mr. Chambers doing ? 
I hope you will send him to Sakarran — ^he will be a 
great support to Brereton. My best love to Mrs. 
M'Dougall, and all our dear folks. You will comfort 

poor , and I trust he bears his misfortunes in a 

proper spirit. Say all that is kind to the natives, tell 
them how often my thoughts are with them, and how I 
wish my person were too. 

Ever your sincere friend, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 146. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Malta, March 31, 18&1. 

My dear Jack, 

I RE-OPENED my note of the 29 th on the receipt 
of your welcome letters of the 22nd, 23rd and 24th 
ultimo. 

All the arrangements you propose for Downe Hall 
will suit me admirably ; and our holidays passed, I can 



SIR JAMES BBOOKE, K.C.B. 57 

look out for a houde, or cottage at Greenwich, for I 
could not then take up my abode with you, without 
subjecting Mrs. Templer to serious inconvenience, 
from the number of my visitors. Don't you know 
that I am a " Lion f I was delighted to hear that 
the papers I sent were so conclusive, and in good time ; 
and as I agree with you, that in all probability the 
motion will be postponed till after Easter, I shall still 
continue to acquaint you with another branch of the 
subject, which Brereion writes me will come under 
discussion, this is what Mr. Hume calls the " Sakarran 
aggression/^ The case is very simple. The enclosed 
sketch will show you the river, and I may remark that 
Linga is not a piratical tribe, but, at feud with Serebas 
and Sakarran, and only restrained by my influence, 
from continuing the ** intertribal war^^ but I allow no 
intertribal wars. You will observe the position of my 
fort at the junction of the Sakarran with the Batong 
Lupar. The Dyaks of Batong Lupar are very nume- 
rous, and not piratical^ therefore I have never attacked 
them, and we are excellent friends. 

This is preliminary. The place where my fort is . 
built was inhabited by Sheriff Mullah, a brother of 
Sheriff Sahib, and it was taken by Captain Keppel in 
1844, his attack having been justified by a decision in 
the Court of Admiralty. 

Sheriff Mullah, and the piratical Malays having 

d3 



58 PRIVATE LSTTERS OF 

been driyen away, I became friends with some of diese 
people, both Malay and Dyak, and encouraged Ab<Hig 
Kapiy a Sakarran Malay, to settle at the place, which 
he did. This place, by way of distinction, is now 
called "Sakarrana." Several of the Dyak chiefe 
whose lands were nearest to Sakarrana, promised me 
faithfully to renounce piracy, and to support Abong 
Kapi. The three principal ones were Gasim, Lingi, 
and Bulan. The two first were quite sincere, and I 
have always trusted them since, eyen though opposed 
to me afterwards. Evil councils were, however, too 
strong with the Sakarran Dyaks ; and two sherifis, by 
name Sherifi^Baka and Sheriff Long, both now residing 
in Sarawak, tempted them to make a piratical excur- 
sion, on which they were met by the Linga people. 
The Dyaks most inclined to continue piracy, were 
those located above the rapids ; and these, moved by 
evil advice, overbore the influence of Abong Kapi, of 
Gasim, Lingi, and others, and went out with a large 
fleet, attacking Linga, and doing other mischief. 
Abong Kapi, Gasim, &c., afraid that I would retaliate 
on them^ left Sakarrana and its neighbourhood, and 
retired above the rapids, where it was difficult to get 
at them. I always had hopes of them, and as they did 
not come out often, being kept in check by the Linga 
people, I turned my attention to Serebas. The Dyaks 
of the Batong Lupar were never meddled with, except- 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.6. 59' 

iDg once, by a blackgaard named Bandar Cassim, and 
I paid him off for his bad act done, without my know- 
ledge. The Sakarrans suffered severely in the fleet 
destroyed by Captain Farquhar, and Kapi, Gasim, &c., 
regained their influence, and promised once more to 
renounce piracy, and I once more believed them — ^but 
a town and fort at the mouth of the Sakarran was very 
desirable to prevent the good party from being over- 
borne, as they were before ; to protect Linga from 
Sakarran, and Sakarran from Linga, and to become a 
mart for commerce in a very noble country. Thus 
piracy would be prevented, and good government and 
security established. 

I recommended the plan to our Government at home, 
before the defeat of the Serebas, but afterwards it 
became comparatively easy^ and the only question was, 
who was I to get to govern the place? It will be 
proper to mention, that the rajahs of Borneo have not 
been acknowledged in this river for at least fifty years ; 
but con^dering that the country was originally theirs, 
I mentioned my intention of establishing a government 
to the sultan and Mumein, and gained their willing 
assent to the measure. It was, I believe, last Decem- 
ber, that I sent Crookshank with a few prahus from 
Sarawak, to build the fort, and I established Sheriff 
Hassim, a Pontiana man, in authority at Sakarrana. 
When Mf. Hume calls it an " aggression," pray ask 



60 PBIVATB LETTEB8 OF 

him who built the fort ? Why, Sakarran Malays and 
Dyaks. Who guard the fort? Sakarran Malays and 
Dyaks. \Mio asked for the fort ? Sakarran Malays 
and Dyaks. I only provided the arms and ammuni- 
tion, and other things necessary to start Sheriff Hiissim ; 
but the Sakarran people chose lum for their ruler, and 
the Sakarran people, Malays and Dyaks of Sakarran 
and Batong Lupar, upheld him in authority. The 
experiment, however, was a failure, for Sheriff Hassim 
did not agree with the Sakarran Malays, and he com- 
mitted several unjust acts, and the consequence was 
that the SakaiTan Malays came to me to complain, 
and requested his removal, or permission to leave the 
place. 

These people had, I considered, a right to do what 
they pleased in the matter, and after inquiry I found 
that Sheriff Hassim had behaved badly, and I gave my 
consent to his removal, and I left it with the Sakarran 
Malays and Dyaks to choose any one they liked to 
govern them, and they all said, if I gave them a good 
Englishman they would prefer his rule to that of any 
native. At their request, therefore, I ohose Brereton 
to rule over these one hundred thousand people, and I 
trust to God he will do it well ; and though young, I 
have confidence in him, and know that he has many 
qualities suited to the task. Mr. Hume himself, must 
allow that no better title can exist, and Brereton is now 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, EUC.B. 61 

in Sakarran, supported by the Sakarran people, and not 
interfering with them in any manner, excepting to pre- 
vent piracy, to encourage commerce, and to do justice. 

The Dyaks have come down from the interior, and 
occupy ail the lands before deserted, and the Sakarran 
Malays occupy the town, and farm below the town, half- 
way to Linga ; or about twenty five miles, whilst the 
Ldnga people farm up the river, the other twenty-five 
miles* The Undop is beginning to be settled once 
more by the unhappy tribe of that name, who were 
driven out by the ceaseless incursions of the Serebas ; 
and Sakarrana will become a place of importance in 
a commercial point of view. 

These are the grounds upon which I have acted, the 
results are yet to be seen ; but if I succeed, if the 
Sakarrans support their ruler, peace and security will 
succeed to piracy and insecurity, and the first object 
of Brereton, is to put an end to intertribal war, and 
to reconcile the Linga Dyaks with those of Sakarran. 
Had I not been so great an invalid, I should myself 
have gone to Sakarran to establish them in the right 
path — and I esteem it most important to establish 
similar governments along the entire coast, wherever 
the population desire it, to establish security for life 
and property, and I doubt not we shall see results, 
which, when I am passed away, will be a blessing to 
Borneo, and a substantial commercial advantage to 



62 PRIVATE LBTTERS OF 

England. It would indeed be lamentable, if this 
miserable system of tampering with all snbjects mider 
the sun, and reducing all distant measures to the lerel 
of Parliamentary faction, should impede a great sub- 
stantial and practical good — ^but 1 will not believe that 
such a thing is possible. Let me say then — 

Ist. That Sakarran is governed by Sakarran people, 
and Brereton placed there by their choice. 

2nd. That our Government has been acquainted 
with the establishment of a fort, and my intention of its 
becoming a nucleus for a trading town. 

3rd. That the Saltan of Borneo, whose territory it 
originally was, has given his consent ; and it is clearly 
for the advantage of the Borneo Government, for it 
may derive a revenue in time from a river, which, 
for half a century, has disowned its authority. 

The establishment of this fort has cost me some 
money, and I shall derive nothing from it. Brereton 
in undertaking the charge, lives at his own expense, 
and is entirely dependent on the Dyaks for the amount 
of revenue it may please them to give ; but from what 
I know of them, I do not doubt of their giving 
what has been an immemorial custom. No govern* 
ment, however simple, can be sustained without some 
expense, and the labourer is worthy of his hire ; but I 
have arranged with Brereton, that, if the revenue ever 
rises from the increased prosperity of the place, that 



STB JAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 69 

the rights of the Borneo rajahs, (and these ri^ts 
are very doubtful) are to be fairly considered. 

With Brereton is Mr. Lee,* an independent gentle- 
man; and Mr. Chambers, the missionary, when he 
becomes a little acquainted with the language, will 
take up his abode amongst the Dyaks, and we may ex- 
pect great things from his labours. 

1st April, 1851. — ^I add a line, to say that I have 
made up my mind to go by sea, to Naples, Civita 
Vecchia, Leghorn, and Genoa, visiting the capitals 
from the respective sea pomts, and giving up Switzer- 
Ifmd. I shall proceed from Genoa, to Marseilles and 
Paris, and be with you by the end of June. I 
cmly wait here, till I get a circular letter of credit from 
Coutts's, which I have asked Mr. Cameron to send. 

Malta is a cheap place, and I have given myself an 
outfit here at half the price, it would have cost in 
England. 

Lord and Lady were going to Sicily, and they 

have asked me to go with them for a few days* 
tripy which I shall do, if they hold to the purpose. 

Give my love to all your party, children and all. 
Farewell. 

Yours, ever affectionately, 

J. Brooke. 

* This gentleman was afterwards killed in a most gallant and 
determined attack on a fleet of the Sakarrans, to prevent their putting 
to sea for piratical purposes. 



64 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

To arm you more completel j, I may further mention^ 
that with Breretou, at Sakarran, is firstly, the aged 
Laksimana Minudeen, and his actiye and intelligent 
son, Abong Aim, both natives of Sakarran; who left it 
in the troubled times. The Laksimana was the last 
officer appointed by the Brune Government, whose 
authority was superseded by the father of Sherifi^ Sahib 
and Sheriff Mullah. The Laksimana was then a young 
man, and the Sakarran Dyaks did not, in his time, 
pirate, nor, as I before said, do the Dyaks of Batong 
Lupar, pirate oow. Besides the Laksimana, is his con- 
nexion Abong Kapi and his people, whom I before 
induced to locate, without a forty at the same place. 
Sheriff Mullah, who before ruled, has likewise pro- 
mised never to pirate again, and lives there; and 
Sheriff Sahib's widow and her family prefer it to any 
other place, because they are sure to be well treated. 
This lady sent her son to Sarawak, with Grant, and the 
boy lived with me for a fortmght, just before I left. 
This does not look like persecution or aggression on 
my part, or distrust on theirs. I ask but one thing 
from them, that is, to renounce piracy ; and if I am not 
prevented, and my life be spared, I do not doubt being 
able to extend the benefits of good government along 
the entire coast. I have power, great power, but I 
maintain, that I use it for the benefit of the mass of the 
people, for the benefit of the miserable Brune Govern- 
ment, and for the extension of our national commerce. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.aB, 65 

Ask Mr. Cobden whether this is not better than 
insecurity, and bloodshed, and piracy, and intertribal 
wars? And whisper in Mr. Hume's ear, that what 
I have done for Sakarran, I intend doing for other 
rivers, and that I am proud to see my own countrymen 
ruling a willing people ; and that I don't suspect every 
Englishman of being a rascal ; nay, I am inclined to 
believe that Joseph himself is not a bad fellow, barring 
bis obstinacy and suspicious turn of mind. I have 
written so much, that I must close, and 

. Believe me, 

J. Brooke. 

When you have done with this letter, I want you to 
show it to Mr. Brereton. You are mistaken about 
Colonel Butterworth baring made a judicial inquiry on 
piracy. The inquiry he made, was to satisfy himself as 
Governor of Singapore, of the propriety of Capt. Kep- 
pel's measures; and he reported very strongly on the 
subject to the Government of India in their favour. 



No. 147. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Malta, April 17, 1851. 

Mt dear Jack, 

I RETURNED from Sicily yesterday, after a 
week's cruise, and received your letter. The blow will 



66 PRIVATE LBTTEBS OF 

keep, and my last letter on Sakarran will thus hav^ 
lime to take the field, as well as the address from 
the merchants of Java, which I now forward, and 
which is signed by all the English firms, some Dutch, 
and one Major of Chinese. You will see the ravages 
the pirates are committing near Labuan, and the 
measures forced on the Government there, to protect 
the island, and reinforce the north points — ^the natives 
being panic-struck at a report (by no means im- 
probable) that the island was about to be attacked. 
That it might be assaulted any day there is no doubt 
We ought to have a steamer, always at the disposal of 
the local authorities; and there are three or four 
lying here, which would sail as well. How stin^gly 
this may be retorted on Hume and Cobden. 

Parsimony has led to the danger of the island : and 
if taken by the pirate force, let the nation thank these 
her patriots. If the English flag be insulted, who is to 
blame ? The lives now sacrificed at Gaza, the slaves 
taken, the trade interrupted, are the consequences of 
the outcry made by Hume and his party. This outcry 
has checked the course of measures for the suppresrion 
of piracy. 

The exertions of the navy have been damped, and 
obstacles thrown in our way. 

The pirates are daily gaining strength and courage, 
whilst I am employed answering my calumniators. 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 67 

I forward you likewise, as I promised, a corresp(m* 
dence with Colonel Butterworth, arising out of these 
calumnies. You will please observe, dear Jack, what 
a resolute rascal I am, and how determined to fight 
this battle to the knife. 

I know not what the Government may think : but I 
know that they ought to support me, for I am the per- 
son wronged ; and really they had better put a vitupe- 
rative editor on the bench, to keep him silent. 

The story pretty well tells itself, therefore will keep 
till we meet, which, when you receive this, will only 
be a few days. Tou know that I am a bungler, and a 
m^e child in arrangements and parliamentary conflicts ; 
but the approval by the House, of the policy would be 
admirable ; and if you can, pray obtain Lord — 's 



I shall leave this on the 25th at latest, therefore, 
should arrive at Southampton on the 5th or 6th, if not 
the 4th. 

Now for lodgement. I suppose I must be in London, 
or at any rate with you at Greenwich, till Hume's 
motion comes ofi: Where shall I lodge? If you 
judge London to be the best place, see if you can 
get my old lodgings, if not exorbitantly dear—- other- 
wise with you at Greenwich, till I can look about 
me. I enclose a note for Channon, wliom I have 
just sent home; will you add a line, telling him 



68 PRIVATE LETTEfiS OF 

where to meet me. Say the Railway Hotel, South- 
ampton, OP your own house, Greenwich. He is near 
Southampton, at Portsmouth. Charlie Grant can 
always shift for himself; he is hard at work on the 
papers, and making a capital chart of the coast of 
Borneo. 

Believe me, &c., 

J. Brooks. 

I say nothing of your meeting me, for I know you 
are busy ; but I shall go to the hotel close to the ter- 
minus and the docks. 

I8tk. — Since writing, I find my note to Channon 
must go home through Cameron, as I do not know the 
direction, and I have told him to meet me at South- 
ampton. I think, likewise, my best plan will be to go 
to Warren's Hotel, Waterloo Place, which is but a 
step from the club, and where I shall be in the very 
focus of news. I have, therefore, written to Mundy to 
take me rooms. 

If I do not arrive at the time I have mentioned, you 
must attribute it to my not having found room in the 
'^ Euxine," from Constantinople ; you may look for me 
in the next packet, or via Marseilles. I have only now 
to mention, that Sir Thomas Cochrane has written to 
Lord John Russell, about Borneo and myself, which 
letter you should get. The Bishop's letter, likewise, 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.R 69 

to the committee, should he in your hands; and of 
eourse you will get Captain Wallage's letter to me 
Qwnplaining of heing tampered with, if you think neces- 
sary. It is in the Colonial Office ; and at any rate 

will use it. The history of Butterworth's report 

to the Supreme Government of India is as follows : — 

Keppel reported his attack on Sheriff Sahih and the 
Sakarrans to Butterworth, as Governor of Singapore ; 
but the evidence of piracy was with me in Borneo. 
Butterworth on this, set to, in Singapore, to obtain 
evidence of piracy, in order to satisfy himself of the 
propriety of Keppel's measures ; and having done this, 
he reported to the Supreme Government on the subject, 
at the same time forwarding the affidavits he had taken 
from inhabitants of Aya and Miika, on the north-west 
coast, who were trading in Singapore. These affi- 
davits are strong ; and he says in his report, that they 
are the most desperate pirates^ He read me the report, 
&c., the very last morning I was in Singapore, but re- 
fused to give them to me. 

On this, I applied to the Government of India, 
requesting copies might be forwarded to the Foreign 
Office. If the Government has complied with my 
request, the papers may have arrived by the last mail, 
or they may come by the next mail (24th or 26th May), 
if Hume's motion be postponed so long. In urging 
the approval of the policy by the House of Commons, 



70 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

tbe great injury done, is the main argument ; measures 
impeded, pirates gaining courage, our national character 
lowered, &c. Snd. The unjust persecution of me, &e. 
My kind Ioto to all your party; I long to be 
with you 

J. Brooke* 

Perhaps the papers from India are directed to me, in 
which case, they will be signed on the envelope by one 
of the secretaries of Government, and may be opened 
at once. 

Sir Thomas Cochrane writes me, that Hume sent 

him a book of letters, written by Scrutator ( by 

report), called " Borneo Revelations,"* which he is 
going to produce, or argue from. The letters are in- 
genious ; but written in the worst spirit ; and by tear- 
ing passages in my Joinnal from their context, and 
perverting their meaning, and placing them in juxta- 
position, they make apparent contradictions, such as 
may be made even from the New Testament 



My dear Jack, 

I ADD a line at the last moment to say that we 
are well, and shall positively come by the " Euxine " 
steamer, which at the latest leaves this on the 26th. 
I got up at daybreak yesterday and wrote in haste 

* A pamphlet that had appealed in Singapore. 



Sm JAMES BROOKS, K.aB. 71 

the accompanying hints, some of which are new toyou. 
When I arrive it will he time to scrutinize " Scru- 
tator " hriefly ; not that it deserves such scrutiny, hut 
only because it is as well to meet everything alleged 
against me, and hecause Hume means to make a 
flourish ahout it I have shown the Butterworth cor- 
respondence to Lord , who quite approves of what 

I have done, and thinks the Government must sup- 
port me. Adieu. 

Ever yours, 

J. Brooke. 



72 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 



CHAPTER III. 

January 31, 1851, to February 20, 1851. 



THE CORRESPONDENCE WITH THE GOVERNOR 
OF SINGAPORE. 

No. 148. 

LiBUT.-CoLONEL BuTTERWORTH, C.B., Govemor of 
the Straits Settlements and Presiding Judge of the 
Court of Singapore. 

Singapore, Janoaiy 31, 1851. 
Sir, 

I AM anxious to call your attention to the recent 
appointment of Mr. Woods, the editor of the " Straits 
Times" newspaper, to be the deputy sheriff of Singa- 
pore. 

I am aware that this appointment was not made by 
your Honour, but that owing to a delay on the part of 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 73 

the gentleman selected by you, you permitted the sheriff 
to nominate to this office. I am aware, likewise, that 
it would have been invidious (however objectionable the 
appointment might be on general grounds) to refuse 
your sanction to the sheriff's nomination, without some 
specific proofs, that Mr. Woods was an unfit person to 
hold any public situation whatsoever. 

Appreciating your Honours motives and feelings, 
and knowing that you were imperfectly acquainted with 
Mr. Woods' character, and in ignorance of the proofs 
of this person's moral turpitude, it becomes my duty to 
offer for your consideration the following statement : — 
.Mr. Wood3, as editor, advanced charges in the 
"Straits Times" newspaper, of the 23rd May, 1849, 
relating to the expedition up the Kaluka River, for 
the suppression of piracy in Serebas. 

I have the honour to enclose three extracts from the 
article in question, but I must refer to the paper itself 
(and to numerous other papers) for the details of these 
and many other statements of a similar character, 
worked up with every circumstance of horror, which 
malignity could devise; and you will permit me to 
add that the effect produced by these unprecedented 
slanders is still in force, and still exercises such an 
influence on the minds of some statesmen, that the 
matter will, in all probability, be again discussed in 
Parliament during the course of the approaching 

VOL. III. E 



74 PBIVATB LETTERS OF 

session. The charges brought forward so distinctly by 
Mr. Woods, are of such a nature, so deeply aflTecting 
the character of the officers of Her Majesty's service, 
of the officers of the Honourable Company's steam- 
vessel " Nemesis/' and of the other gentlemen present, 
that the only alternative, is to pronounce the persons 
engaged in the expedition, to be murderers and felons, 
or the deputy sheriff of Singapore to be a gross slan- 
derer. Although these statements have been repeatedly 
pronounced false, although publicly challenged to give 
up his infamous informant, the deputy sheriff has 
declined doing so, and has thus made himself re- 
sponsible, for the falsehood and infamy, of being the 
promulgator, if not the inventor of these monstrous 
calumnies. 

Your Honour, and the Judges associated with you on 
the bench, are aware that the criminal law affords no 
redress for this heinous moral offence ; and I would be 
clearly understood, that my objection against this 
appointment, is not urged on the ground of personal 
injury, but on the broad principle that a man notori- 
ously and absolutely, violating the obligations imposed 
by society, and the precepts inculcated by religion, 
cannot be permitted, under any circumstances, to fill a 
respectable public office, without danger and disgrace 
to the Government imder which he serves, and the 
community in which he lives. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 75 

The charges of murder and felony publicly advanced 
by the deputy sheriff against his fellow-citizens, must 
by the first principles of equity be held to be false, 
until they be proved ; and it is left for society, and for 
Government as the organ of society, to mark its sense 
of a heinous deviation from the path of rectitude, and 
a glaring outrage on public morals. 

Lord Coke has declared " that those things which 
are of the highest criminality, may be of the least dis^ 
grace,'' and, reversing this proposition, your Honour 
will, I feel sure, agree with me that there are misde- 
meanors in law (which money cannot compensate), 
which are in the highest degree disgraceful and de 
grading, in a moral point of view. In the present 
instance, the moral degradation of the deputy sheriff, is 
not confined simply, to giving currency to a calumny 
furnished by an informant, who might have deceived 
him ; and had the deputy sheriff been misled, or unable 
subsequently to advance proofs of his allegations im- 
puting felony and murder to public officers, an atone- 
ment might have been offered for inflicting so deep an 
injury on society and on individuals. 

The enclosed copies of documents will prove, how- 
ever, that Mr. Woods did not receive the information 
contained in his editorial article, from any source on 
which an honest man ought to have relied ; and as every 
respectable person present during the expedition, as 

e2 



76 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

well as every respectable person within 300 miles of the 
scene of action, has positively and solemnly demed all 
knowledge of these statements, and the only conclusion 
therefore to be arrived at, is, that Mr. Woods derived 
his information from a seaman or native, (which sup- 
position is highly improbable) ; or that he invented the 
falsehoods which he promulgated as truths. In what- 
ever light the conduct of the deputy sheriff may be 
viewed, there can be but one opinion of a moral delin- 
quency so serious and so apparent ; and I will content 
myself, therefore, after offering a few remarks, with 
leaving the principle for your Honour's consideration, 
and for the consideration of the other Judges of the 
Court, whether it be consistent with the character of 
the East India Company's Government, with the purity 
of the Court of Judicature in Singapore, or with the 
duty which Government owes to society, to permit a 
person to hold a responsible situation, who has been 
guilty of a crime, too heinous to stigmatise in appropri- 
ate terms, in an official document. On the score of 
public morality, I would represent the danger, and 
worse than danger, of intrusting judicial functions to a 
man, who, (if he be the editor of the newspaper in 
question) is undeniably guilty of the gravest moral 
offence against his fellow-men, against society, and 
against the principles of virtue and religion. On the 
score of public morality, I would represent that if there 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 77 

be a duty incumbent on an upright man to guard his 
own character, or the character of his family, from 
moral contamination, it is a more imperious duty of 
Government, especially in the judicial department, to 
select agents for the public service, untainted by moral 
baseness. 

It appears to me, that the foundations of society, the 
stability of institutions, the standard of morals, depend 
on the character of those who administer justice, dis-* 
pense the offices of religion, and execute the laws; and 
that to countenance a gross departure from rectitude 
in a public officer, be he high, or be he low, is to strike 
a blow at the highest interests of mankind. It is 
separating Government from morality, and avowing to 
the world that the rewards of office may be conferred as 
the wages of sin. 

A notorious gamester— a notorious profligate — a 
man degraded by any notorious public vice, could not 
be selected to exercise the functions of a Judge, without 
disgrace to the bench and danger to the people. Can, 
therefore, a sherifl^, or a deputy sherifl^ or any other 
functionary attached to the judicature, be a falsifier 
and a slanderer without disgrace, and without danger 
to the administration and the dignity of the Court ? 
Is it in his want of truth, in his blindness to moral 
obligations, or in his defiance of those precepts of duty 
which regulate the conduct between man and man. 



78 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

that the Court over which your Honour presides could 
looky for the conscientious discharge of his present 
o£Scial duties by the deputy sheriff? 

The purity of the higher offices of the State is re- 
garded with scrupulous care — are the lower offices to 
follow another rule ? Is there no moral standard by 
which public functionaries are to be judged ? Is there 
no moral delinquency, abhorrent to the upright mind, 
which should incapacitate the perpetrator, for the 
duties and rewards of judicial office ? Are deliberate 
falsehood and maleTolent slander in future to be ex- 
cluded from the category of vices? Can they ever 
become recommendations or matters of indifference 
within Her Majesty's dominions ? 

On the score of public morality I have thus strongly, 
though with every sentiment of respect to your Honour, 
and your brother Judges, insisted upon a principle, 
sacred in my opinion, even to its minutest details, and 
altogether independent of personal considerations — a 
principle, in my view of the subject, on the due main* 
tenance of which, rest the moral character and the 
moral power of all free governments. 

Having fulfilled the obligation imposed upon me by 
a sense of duty, I submit to your Honour, togethw 
with your colleagues on the bench of Judges, whether 
the deliberate, if not venal imputation, of such heinous 
crimes, falsely charged on public officers, be a moral 



SIB JAHES BBOOKB, E.C.B. 79 

offence, and whether such an offence ought to be re- 
warded, by permitting the offender to become associated 
with the Judges, in their official duties ? The decision^ 
with all its consequences and responsibilities, rests 
with your Honour and your colleagues : it is sufficient 
for me^ to express the principles I hold, and to place 
on record the character of the deputy sheriff of Singa- 
pore, and his defamation of public officers bearing Her 
Majesty's commission, when acting under orders^ and 
carrying out measures, subsequently approved by Her 
Majesty^s ministers. 

I herewith publicly denounce Mr. Woods, the deputy 
sheriff of Singapore, with wilful, malicious, and unre- 
tracted falsehood, in having charged Her Majesty's 
officers, and the officers of the East India Company, 
with knowingly invading the peaceful marts of com- 
merce, and slaughtering the innocent inhabitants ; with 
being principals or accessaries in the death of four 
prisoners, " at first treated in a firiendly manner," and 
afterwards "treacherously set upon and brutally mur- 
dered;" and with a felony, in allowing an elderly 
woman and her two children, to be retained by their 
native captor, or, in other words, with having reduced 
those persons to the condition of slaves. I herewith 
publicly brand Mr. Woods, the deputy sheriff, with 
these and other malignant falsehoods, and with being 
the author of the foulest slanders that ever disgraced 



80 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

the character of a Christian man ; and I appeal to the 
Judges, in the name of religion, of virtue, and of public 
morality, solemnly to weigh the consequences of re- 
taining in a court of justice, a vicious and degraded 
servant, publicly branded, as I have branded the 
deputy sheriff^ with falsehood and with infamy. I 
appeal to the Court over which your Honour presides, 
to mark its sense of such unheard-of, such unprece- 
dented social crimes ; and to rescue the community of 
Singapore from the contamination of such an example. 
There is another view of Mr. Woods' appointment, 
though of far minor importance, to which I would 
direct your Honour's attention. Mr. Woods, as a 
newspaper editor, has expressed strong opinions relat- 
ing to Her Majesty's Court of Judicature in Labuan ; 
thus may be established aprecedent^ that a functionary 
of one Court of Judicature, may publish matter dero- 
gatory to the dignity of another Court of Judicature. 

Mr. Woods, likewise, since his appointment as 
deputy sheriff, has been actively engaged in obtaining 
signatures to a memorial addressed to a Member of 
the Legislature (his own signature being affixed), 
recommending a Parliamentary investigation upon a 
case, already decided by the Court over which your 
Honour presides^ and calling in question measures^ 
approved by Her Majesty's Government. Thus is 
established a precedent of an inferior officer attached 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C,B. 81 

to the Court, expressing a public doubt on the decision 
of the Judges, and taking a prominent part in a local 
agitation, calculated to embarrass Her Majesty's ser- 
vice. In his character of editor of a newspaper, there 
could be no objection to the course pursued by Mr 
Woods; but for the deputy sheriflF to become an 
active partizan, on questions relating to the public 
service, and a hostile critic of the judgments of the 
Court, appears highly reprehensible. 

The actions and opinions of the deputy sheriff and 
the newspaper editor are inseparably combined ; and it 
is to be feared that the Court of Judicature will be 
considered responsible for the deeds and sentiments of 
its subordinates. The enmity of the deputy sheriff 
may be held in contempt, by those whom he calum- 
niates in his editorial capacity ; but his connexion with 
your Honour in public life, his oflScial intimacy with 
the Judges of the Bench, his introduction by one of 
the Judges to the Right Reverend the Bishop of 
Calcutta^ as a respectable person, his influence with 
the other subordinate officers of the Court (especially 
the native ofiicers), and the impression produced on 
the native population — ^are just causes of apprehension, 
whether viewed as an example, or dreaded as a con- 
tamination. The deputy sheriff's active partizanship 
in obtaining signatures to the memorial before alluded 
to, further establishes a precedent, that a functionary 

E 3 



82 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

of the Court of Judicature of Singapore, can not only 
vilify in his newspaper ; but whilst in office, assail the 
reputation of the Presiding Judge of the Court of 
Judicature of Labuan. 

I need not point out the serious inconveniences 
certain to result from the establishment of such pre- 
cedents, and it will be apparent to your Honour, that 
if the Court of Singapore combines the functions of 
deputy sheriff and newspaper editor, and allows its 
officer to become an active agent, in political proceed- 
ings, directed against the Presiding Judge of the Court 
of Labuan ; the Court of Labuan, exerdsing a like 
authority, and acting upon the same principle, may 
likewise unite the judicial and editorial functions in a 
subordinate, and permit the same license of conduct^ in 
reference to other jurisdictions. Thus might be wit* 
nessed the unseemly spectacle of two of Her Majesty's 
courts of justice, through their official and responsible 
functionaries, waging a war of newspapers, and calling 
in question the characters of their respective Judges. 
That such might be the consequences, resulting from 
the appointment of a newspaper editor to an official 
sdtuation, can scarcely admit of a doubt ; and it is a 
duty incumbent on the higher functionaries, to preclude 
the remotest chance of such an occurrence ; but I am 
bound to say, that so long as the two characters are 
imited, so long is the danger of retaliation ; and if the 



SIB JAMES BROOKS, E.C.6. 83 

license assumed by the deputy sheriff be pennitted, the 
danger of evil passions being aroused on both sides, 
and of the worst confusion. 

I can imagine no danger more imminent to the ad- 
ministration of justice, than combining the base calum- 
niator, the yiolent political partisan, and the newspaper 
editor, in the person of a judicial servant, who is ex- 
pected to discharge the calm and dispassionate func- 
tions of an office under the Court. 

If by possibility it should be held that functionaries 
of a Court of Justice are to be permitted to treat on 
political subjects through the press, under their own 
unlimited control : actively to engage in gaining sig- 
natures to memorials relating to subjects to be debated 
in Parliament; to sit in judgment, and to publish 
opinions on the conduct of public afianrs, and on the 
character of Her Majesty's servants; the extent of 
such privileges should be clearly defined : as heretofore, 
it has been generally understood that a discreet 
silence, and a discreet forbearance on subjects uncon- 
nected with the functions of office, is the duty of all 
persons employed under the Crown, whether in the 
executive or judicial departments of Government. 

The obligation imposed upon me has now been ful- 
filled, and though the prudence of reserve and decorum 
dictates silence in some circumstances, in others pru- 



84 PEIVATE LETTERS OF 

• 

dence of a higher order oiay justify us in speaking our 
thoughts. 

The task has been an unpleasing one to myself, and 
I may not expect that it can prove agreeable to your 
Honour, or to your colleagues, but the principle at 
issue is of vital importance, and in my regard should 
be maintained as a sacred duty ; for in the words of 
the great statesman I have before quoted, it is to be 
feared that ^' those who are bountiful to crime will be 
rigid to merit." 

I have, &c., 

J. Brooke, 

Governor of Labuan, Presiding Judge of the 

Court, and Her Majesty's Commissioner 

in Borneo, &c, &c., &c, 

P.S. Since the conclusion of the despatch I have 
learned that Mr. Woods, the deputy sheriflF, holds, 
likeivise the appointment of messenger of the Bankrupt 
Court, and of course every objection which applies 
against the one office, applies likewise against the 
other, nor have I in writing supposed the possibility of 
the sheriff maintaining in office, an infamous person 
whom the Judges desired to remove. 

J. B. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 85 

Enclosure, No. 1.* 

Extracts from the Editorial Article of the "Straits 

Times " Newspaper, of May 23, 1849. 

1. If the expedition failed to discover pirates, peace- 
able traders were found, who, perhaps, were more acceptable 
victims, as lacking the means and courage to resist ag- 
gression. 

2. The spy boat was in advance, in which we believe 
was the " Datu Patinghi," and came across a small boat 
containing four men, apparently Serebas traders ; these 
men had no arms on them, and none in their boat ; the 
latter contained a quantity of seree, a native luxury, and a 
staple article of trade throughout the Indian Archipelago. 
These four men were at first treated in a friendly manner, 
and taken on board the " Ulai " spy boat, their own frail 
vessel being towed. After remaining on board the spy 
boat some time, they were treacherously set upon, and 
most brutally murdered ; their heads after being cut off, 
were subsequently smoked. 

3. At one of the five villages, were taken captives — yes, 
reader, allowed to be retained by the Rajah's allies as cap- 
tives — an elderly woman and her two children ; the hus- 
band and son of this woman were slain before her face, and 
their heads smoked in her presence. 

This is no exaggeration, we are dealing with facts. 

* There were six other enclosures, showing, that none of the 
officers eligaged in the expedition, nor any of the European in- 
habitants of Sarawak, were the authors of the above statements. 



86 PBIVATE LEITEBS OF 

Sir James Brooke, K.C.B., ' 

Singapore, February 5, 1851. 

Sir, 

I HAVE had the honour to receive and submit 
to the Honourable the Recorder, and the other Judge 
of the Court of Judicature at this station, your Ex- 
cellency's letter dated the 31st January, which reached 
me yesterday afternoon. 

I confess that I was much pained by that communi- 
cation and its enclosures, but it will be evident to your 
Excellency, that I could only view it in my judicial 
capacity, in conjunction with the highest legal authority 
in the Straits* 

K your Excellency intends^ that the charges ad- 
vanced against the deputy sheriff, should be put in a 
train of legal investigation, then it would be necessary 
to place these documents in the hands of Mr. Woods, 
and to call upon him to take such proceedings as may 
be required^ for disproving the charges brought against 
him. 

If, on the contrary, it was your Excellency's desire 
that the Court should assume all these charges to be 
correct, without other proof than the voluntary affi- 
davits enclosed in your letter, and that the Court, acting 
upon that letter, and those affidavits^ should dismiss 
from office, a public officer, without affording him an 



SIB JAMES BBOOKE, K.C.B. 87 

opportunity of disproving the charges brought against 
him, or of being heard in his defence, it would be im- 
possible for the Court consistently to comply with such 
a request. 

The very first principle of common law and common 
justice is, that a man should not be condemned before 
he is heard in his defence, and as Mr. Woods has been 
nominated to his present office by a gentleman of the 
rank and character of the high sherifi^of this settlement, 
the Court are bound to presume, until the contrary 
be proved, that a fit person has been appointed. 

Under all these circumstances, it does not appear to 
the Judges^ that there is sufficient before the Court to 
comply with your Excellency's request, but should 
your Excellency desire to institute any charges against 
Mr. Woods, the Judges are of opinion that recourse 
should be had to the usual judicial proceedings to 
which all persons resort in libel cases, and to which 
there appears- to be no legal impediment. 
I have, &c., 

W. J. BUTTERWORTH. 



88 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 



No. 149. 

Lieut.-Colonel Butterworth, C.B. 

Singapore, February 6, 1851. 

Sir, 

I HAVE to acknowledge your Honour's reply to 
my communication of the 31st ultimo, relative to the 
appointment of Mr. Woods to be deputy sheriff, and 
messenger to the Insolvent Court of Singapore. 

I am informed, that although de jure the appoint- 
ment of his deputy rests with the sheriff, it is de facto 
an appointment of the Court, an arrangement being 
usually made to that effect, the present appointment, 
however, being an exception to the general rule. 

I am likewise informed that the appointment of 
messenger to the Insolvent Courts is in the direct gift 
of the judge. 

In either case, it will be apparent to your Honour 
that an appointment, if objectionable on moral grounds, 
is not less objectionable^ from being made by the high 
sheriff, and that an injury to public morality is not less 
injurious, in consequence of the quarter whence it pro- 
ceeds. 

It is true, as stated by your Honour, that by the 
first principles of common law and common justice, a 
man, if he be tried, should be heard in his own de- 



SIK JAMES BBOOKE, K.C.B. 89 

fence, before he is condemned ; and it is true, likewise, 
that by the first principles of common law and common 
justice, that charges must be held to be false, until they 
be proved. It is a notorious and undeniable fact, that 
Mr. Woods has brought charges against Her Majesty's 
officers, which he has not proved. I, in the name of 
these officers, have branded him with infamy for so 
doing, and demanded whether he be a fit person to 
hold any public situation whatsoever. 

Your Honour in stating, that without other proof 
than the voluntary affidavits and the charges contained 
in my letter, it would be impossible jfor the Court, con- 
sistently to comply with a request, to remove a public 
officer, must surely have totally mistaken the question 
at issue. I have made no request to the Court, but I 
have stated that an outrage on public morals has been 
committed, by the appointment of Mr. Woods to be 
deputy sheriflF. The voluntary affidavits are not in- 
tended to be proofs oflFered, but statements to show the 
extent of infamy, already sufficiently known and suffi- 
dently public. If we discard these extra-judicial 
affidavits, the fact remains, that Mr. Woods is the 
editor of the " Straits Times " newspaper, and is the 
author, or the original promulgator, of slanders as 
infamous as ever disgraced a man. 

This single fact, and the nature of these statements, 
require no elaborate or refined consideration ; the fact 



90 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

is within the personal cognizance of the judges of the 
Court, and as certain as any fact can be in the world. 
It is the character of the Court, of the public service, 
and the rights of honest men, that are at stake ; and the 
conversion of the accuser into the accused, cannot avail 
the defamer who has been raised to office. 

A systematic course of shameless defamation has 
been pursued in the "Straits Times" for three years, 
and is rewarded with public office, where public office 
was never conferred before. I must repeat, therefore, 
that it is separating Government from morality, and 
bestowing the emoluments of office as the wages of sin. 
Mr. Woods is bound to prove what he has advanced ; 
if he does not prove it, he is infamous and degraded 
in the eyes of every upright man. This is my view of 
the real question under discussion. 

By the custom of society and for the maintenance of 
private morals, a menial must have a previously good 
character, before he can be admitted into a respectable 
feimily, and would not be permitted to retain his place, 
if discovered that he was of bad repute, and has been 
guilty of immorality. I ask, therefore, whether a man 
notoriously guilty of a great moral offence, the offence 
of charging murder and other crimes on his fellow- 
men, and not proving these charges, is to be maintained 
in office; and whether a Government can dispense 
with a good previous character in its servants ? 



SIB JAMES BBOOKE, K.C.B. 91 

I repeat, again and again, that by the first principles 
of common law and common justice, the deputy sheriff 
must prove his charges, or that the Court is bound to 
hold them to be false, and their inventor or original 
promulgator to be infamous and debased. 

Is it not notorious, that for years the deputy sheriff 
has been an habitual calumniator of Her Majesty's 
officers? that he has publicly made assertions which cause 
a man .to shudder ? Whether they be true or whether 
they be false, has he ever ofiered a proof ? Is he not 
bound, legally and morally, to offer proof when he 
charges murder; to prefer a judicial accusation to 
a malignant slander? Is this his recommendation 
for ofiBice ? 

My duty has now been fulfilled, and the principle 
maintained, that moral turpitude, not to be exceeded, 
incapacitates a man for public employment. 

The duty of the Court, I am not sufficiently pre- 
sumptuous to point out, nor the particular steps by 
which public morahty may be vindicated, the dignity 
of the judicature maintained, and society rescued from 
the contagion of vice and evil example, set up in high 
places. 

I have already informed your Honour that I act 
upon public principles, and not on private grounds, and 
although the &lsehood and the slander be not the less 
infamous, there has been, thanks to the right moral 



92 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

feeling of our countrymen, no personal injury from the 
diabolical attempt of this calumniator to ruin Her 
Majesty's officers. It is this moral feeling, which has 
been outraged by his appointment ; and another ob- 
jection sufficiently obvious to the course recommended 
by the Court is, that an action for personal wrongs re- 
ceived, would not vindicate the general principle, that a 
notorious vice incapacitates for public office. If such a 
principle be a theory not carried into practice, it is to 
be lamented, and should be removed ; and if the innocent 
Woods can, with propriety, grace the sheriffalty, the 

religious and the moral are worthy of higher 

station. I should hope, however, that the principle I 
advocate, is acknowledged in action, and not held to 
be a romantic delusion. 

Your Honour has further affirmed, that as Mr. 
Woods has been nominated to his present office by a 
gentleman of the "rank and character of the high 
sheriff, the Court are bound to presume that, until 
the contrary be proved, a fit person has been ap- 
pointed." 

Of the rank or character of the high sheriff I know 
nothing, but I do know that rank and character are ill 
associated with falsehood and slander; and in direct 
contradiction to the doctrine laid down by your Honour, 
I maintain that such charges as Mr. Woods has ad- 
vanced in a newspaper against innocent men must be 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 93 

proved, or otherwise held to be false and infamous ; 
and their author, or general promulgator, considered 
unfit for public office, or for the company of honest 
men. I cannot consider either, that the Court is bound* 
to presume anything, contrary to self-evident and no- 
torious facts ; nor does there appear any necessity for a 
presumption so unreasonable ; as summary dismissal 
from the magistracy, from the sherifialty, and even 
from the lord-lieutenancy of counties, is a practice by 
no means uncommon when rendered necessary for the 
good of society. Should your Honour contend that 
the infamous slander, promulgated by Mr. Woods was 
prior to his appointment, I would beg to reply that 
this fact is an additional reason for his removal, as it 
proves neglect in the selection for office, as well as 
being an injury to society. 

The Court is not to be considered in this case as a 
Judge, before whom legal proceedings are to be 
opened, but as a party deeply interested in preserving 
public morals, and maintaining its own character. If 
the deputy-sheriff be the editor of the " Straits 
Times " newspaper, the conclusion is unavoidable, and 
the Court should hold him guilty. If he be not the 
editor of that newspaper, or if he can prove his charges, 
then the Court is bound to affirm his innocence, but a 
middle course cannot be consistent with justice, as on 
one hand, or the other, a wrong is permitted. 



94 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 

I show, likewise, that the rule of procedure, in con- 
ferring this office, has been departed from, in this 
single instance, to admit Mr. Woods to become deputy 
'sheriff, and that his appointment of messenger of the 
Insolvent Court has been confirmed by the Court. 

On the score of religion, virtue, and morality, I 
have brought to the notice of the Court, the infamous 
character of the person now in the public employ, and 
if, after a reperusal of the single article, quoted in my 
former letter, (one amongst many such), the Court 
cannot perceive the consequence of upholding and 
justifying the appointment, the difference between us 
must be decided by a competent authority, and, I doubt 
not, will be decided on the general ground of public 
morality, and not on the limited base of legal form. 

I beg to assure your Honour, that, whilst I continue 
to discharge the duties of Governor of Labuan, and 
President of the Court established in that island, no 
immoral person, polluted by vice, and shameless in 
want of truth, shall, under any circumstances, be 
appointed; or if appointed (through inadvertence), con- 
tinued in office ; and that a defamer of the innocent 
shall be called upon to prove his accusation, before he 
be rewarded, or before the public service be polluted 
by such association. 

Reserving to myself such future measures, as I may 
deem necessary to establish the vital principle of the 



SIB JAMES BBOOEE, K.C.B. 95 

moral responsibility which the Goveniment of Singapore 
owes to society, and to absolve the public service from 
the imputation cast upon it, by the appointment of a 
notorious slanderer to be deputy sheriff and messenger 
of the Insolvent Court, 

I have, &c., 

J. Brooke, 

Goyernor of Labuan and Presiding Judge of the 
Court, Commissioner of Borneo, &e. 



Sir James Brooke, K.C.B., 

Singapore, February 20, 1851. 

Sir, 

I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt 
of your Excellency's letter, dated Singapore, the 6th 
instant, which reached me from Penang, by the 
Honourable East India Company's steamer " Hoogly," 
on the 18th inst. 

The Judges adhere to the opinion given in the con- 
cluding paragraph of my communication to your Excel- 
lency, under date the 5th instant, viz., that there is 
not suflScient before the Court to warrant its inter- 
ference. 

I refrain from making any comments on the tone of 
your Excellency's communication, or on the threat 
you hold out to the Court, as the whole correspondence 
will be forwarded to the Right Honourable the Pre- 
sident of the Board of Control, for the information of 



96 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 

Her Majesty's Government, and to the Government of 

India, by the Honom^able the Recorder and myself 

respectively. 

I have, &c., 

W. J. BUTTERWORTH. 



Thus closed this remarkable correspondence, and the 
following high legal opinion, which has been taken on the 
case, will show how right Sir James Brooke was in his 
view, though opposed to that of the authorities in Sin- 
gapore. 

Your Opinion is requested : 

1st. Are not the passages extracted from the 
" Straits Times," marked 1, 2, and 3,* libellous per se, 
and would not Sir James Brooke have been entitled 
to a decision in his favour, in any legal proceeding he 
might have taken against Mr. Woods, by merely 
showing that Mr. Woods was the editor of the " Straits 
Times," at the time those articles were published, 
unless Mr. Woods had justified the charges, by proving 
their truth ? 

2nd. Was the communication to Lieut.-Colonel 
"Butterworth a privileged communication ? 

3rd. Generally to advise Sir James Brooke in the 
matter, so that he should be prepared to take the 
proper and best course on his arrival at Singapore, 
and particularly as. to his right of appeal, should the 
Court there, come to a wrong judgment. 
♦ See ante, page 85, Enclosure 1. 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.R 97 

Answers. 

1st. I am of opinion that the passages extracted 
from the " Straits Times," marked 1, 2, and 3, in the 
enclosure, are lihellous per se, and that Sir James 
Brooke would have been entitled to a decision in his 
&vour, in an action for libel against Mr. Woods, by 
merely showing that Mr. Woods was the editor of the 
"Straits Times" at the time those articles were 
published, unless Mr. Woods had justified the charges, 
by proving their truth. Those passages charge piracy 
and murder, aggravated by treachery, and barbarous 
cruelty. A man who publishes such charges without 
being able to establish their truth, is beyond a doubt, 
guilty of libel. Tried even by the test of verbal 
slander, the passages are actionable, because they 
charge a crime ; and as printed libels, they are cal- 
culated to bring, not only the persons immediately 
concerned in suppressing the pirates, but, indirectly, 
Her Majesty's naval service, into public hatred and 
contempt The passages are, therefore, libels, and 
libels of an aggravated character. 

3nd. I am of opinion that the communication to 
lieut-Colonel Butterworth was a privileged com- 
munication. It was a communication respecting the 
pnq)riety of an appointment to a public office, addressed 
to the person, in whom the power of appointment was, 

VOL. IIL F 



98 PBIYATB LEirBBS OF 

or was supposed to be, by one who, as a subject 
of Her Majesty, had an interest in the matter, con- 
taining charges of unworthy conduct, against Uie 
person who had been appointed to the office, which 
charges the person making the communication had 
good ground for believing, and, indeed, knew to be 
true. Charges brought forward under such circum- 
stances are privileged, unless they can be traced to a 
malignant feeling, or, in other words, actual malice 
against the accused, and proved to have been made with- 
out reasonatie or probable cause. In the present case, 
there seems to be no pretence for imputing td 1^ 
Ja^es Brooke private malice against Mr. Woods, and, 
even if it cotdd be imputed, still there can be no 
doubt, that there was reasonable and probable cause 
for the communication, because, in point of fact, Mr. 
Woods had published the libellous matter complained 
of. I may cite, by way of illustration, the case of 
Fairman v. Ives, 5 Bamewall and Alderson, 643, 
where a creditor of an officer in the army, presented 
a memorial to the secretary-at-war, with a view of 
obtuning payment of his debt, which memorial con- 
tained statements derogatory to the character of the 
officer, but which ike creditor believed to be true, and 
the memorial was held not to be actionable. It was 
considered' immaterial that the secretary-at-war had 



SIB JAMES BBOOEE, ECB. 09 

no direct control over the officer. In recent cases, the 
law of privileged communications has been upheld by 
the Courts with a high hand, and I have no doubt 
that, in anj Court in Westminster Hall, the communi- 
cation of Sir James Brooke to Lieut.-Colonel Butter- 
worth, would be held to have been privileged by the 
occasion, and not to be actionable. 

3rd. I advise Sir James Brooke, in case of pro- 
ceedings being taken against him at Singapore, to 
resist them on the grounds above suggested In case 
of a judgment against him, I advise him to petition for 
leave to appeal. 

As the damages, if any were given, would probably 
be small, the case would not fall within the limits of 
ordinary appeals, which is 10,000 Company's rupees : 
but under the circumstances of this case, I think an 
appeal would be allowed, though the damages were 
under that sum. 

31 March, 1853. Jas. S. Willes, Inner Temple, 

I have read and concur in the above opinion. 

April 1, 1853. Hugh Hill, Liverpool Northern 

Circuit 

I also concur in Mr. Willes's opinion. 

April 20, 1853. Fbedbbick Thesioeb, Temple. 

f2 






100 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 



CHAPTER IV. 

August 31, 1851, to December 27, 1852. 



Sir James Brooks arrived in England on the 6th 
of May, and was at once engaged in meeting the 
attacks on him, which were urged with great perse- 
verance, both in and out of Parliament On the 
10th of July, Mr. Hume brought forward his motion 
for a Commission of Inquiry into the proceedings of 
Sir James Brooke on the coast of Borneo ; and it was 
felt that, under the mask of inquiry, Mr. tlume's real 
object was censure. An elaborate debate, of seven 
hours' duration, followed ; every accusation was urged — 
that Sir James Brooke had destroyed the Serebas and 
Sakarrans as pirates,, when they were not pirates, but 
merely indulging in harmless intertribal wars — ^that 
he had exercised undue influence over the officers of 
the navy to aid him in his designs — that as a Grovem- 
ment servant he had been improperly engaged in 



Sm JAMES BitOOKE, E.O.B. 101 

trading speculations — and that he bad used his de- 
puted powers as Consul-General, to the detriment 
rather than the advancement of British commerce. 
The decisive majority of 230 to 19, by which Mr. 
Hume's motion was rejected, sufficiently marked the 
sense of the House of Commons ; and, as far as could 
be gathered from the tone of the public journals, the 
nation unanimously approved the judgment of the 
House. (See the report of the debate, " Hansard," 
vol. 118, p. 436 ; " The Times," July 11th and 12th.) 
In the month of April, the news of the death of the 
old king of Siam arrived in this country ; and it was 
proposed to renew the negotiation, for a treaty of amity 
and commerce between Great Britain and Siam, and 
again to intrust this delicate mission to the hands of 
Sir James Brooke. The intention was, however, aban- 
doned, and Sir James was enabled to continue his 
stay in his native country. On the 13th of May he 
received the following generous communication from 
Captain Hastings : — 



Union Club, May 12, 1851. 

Dear Sir James Brooke, 

I HARDLY know how you will receive a letter 
from me, but at any rate I venture to write, as I think 
it due to you, hearing you have just arrived in this 
country, to send for your perusal, a note I received 



102 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

from Mr. Hume, upon the subject of his intended 
motion in the House of Commons. 

The enclosures which he alludes to, were copies of 
your letters to Mr. Wise, and the late Sir R. Peers 
observation on the subject of my refusing you assist- 
ance in the year 1844, which by-theby, at the time, 
did me some harm in the Admiralty, as well as show- 
ing me up in Keppel's and Mundy's books ; but of 
that I have long since ceased to think of, and only 
remember the many acts of kindness and friendship 
which I received from you in the East. 

I refused any information to Mr. Hume, and re- 
ferred him to the Admiralty ; but if I can be of the 
smallest service to you, in giving any assistance to 
avert the cruel and unjust persecution which some 
evil'disposed persons are waging against you, I beg 
you will command the services of. 

My dear Sir James Brooke, 

Yours faithfully, 

Geo. Hastinqs. 

Sir James Brooke, K.C.B. 



SIR JAMES BBOOKE, K.C.B. 103 



(Enclosure.) 

Bryanston Square, February l-^, 1851. 

Sir, 

It is my intention to bring before the House of 
Commons the conduct of Sir James Brooke on the 
occasion of the massacre of the Dyaks, on tlie 31st of 
July, 1849 ; and as your conduct has been reflected 
upon in several public letters and papers, which I 
must refer to in the course of my statement (one of 
which letters I enclose for your information), I hope 
you will not object to state the circumstances that 
induced you to refuse compliance with Sir James 
Brooke's request ; as it is important that the truth (as 
regards your refusal, and the facts of that important 
transaction) should be known. 
I remain 

Your obedient servunt, 

J. Hume. 

The Honourable 
Capt. G. F. Hagtingg, R,K 

P.S. Oblige me by returning the enclosure with 
your answer to 

J. H. 



104 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 



No. 150. 
Captain the Hon. G. Hastings, R.N. 

Manrigy's Hotel, 1, Regent-street, 
May 14, 1851. 

My dear Hastings, 

How should I receive a letter, and so gene- 
rous a letter, excepting with the liveliest pleasure ? 

That you should at the time have felt hurt by the 
remark (foolishly made public) I am not surprised to 
hear ; and the reason I did not notice it sooner, was 
the hope that you might never see, what had • been 
written. 

It appears to me that there can be but one construc- 
tion put on the passage referred to. — ^I, from my 
position, was eager to attack the pirates, whilst you, 
being under orders, could not, in your opinion, do so 
consistently with your duty ; I was disappomted, and 
the reflection of this disappointment appears in the 
remarks made at the moment, but our difference was a 
difference of opinion, only as to whether you ought, or 
ought not, to act with the orders you had received. 

Under this impression the entry in Mundy's Journal, 
and the remark in my letter to Mr. Wise, were made ; 
I was irritated and harassed by circumstances, and if 
anything I said caused you pain, I am sincerely sorry 
for it, and you have truly heaped coals of fire upon my 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 105 

head, but there is no gentleman will believe for a 
moment, that I deliberately intended to rejflect upon 
you, 

I do not dwell further on your kind letter, or on the 
Senators attempt to beat the bush for low game. I 
am too good a quarry to be struck down by a kite, 
and you too honest a man to resent a casual remark, at 
the expense of truth. 

Where shall we meet ? let it be by appointment. 
Believe me, my dear Hastings, 
Yours, very sincerely 

J. Brooke. 

P. S. Am I at liberty to use Mr. 'Hume's letter ? 



No. 151. 
Rev. Charles Johnson, M.A. 

Manrigy's Hotel, May 20, 1851 . 

Mt dear Charles, 

Everybody must see the Exhibition, it is so 
wonderful and so beautiful. I was grieved to hear 
that our dear Georgey* was ill. 

Do come up, for I long to see you again. Hume's 
motion comes on to-night, and I am all bustle and 
business. Yesterday I received most satisfactory 
* A daughter of Mr. Johnson. 

f8 



106 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

letters from Brooke, and good ne^s from all quarters. 
The storm is passing overi and few men who have 
been assailed as I have been, have come out so free of 
damage. 

Love to dear Emma and the girls ; and believe me, 
Yours affectionately, 

J. Brooke. 

P. S. Of course, Stuart shall have a holiday. I 
bought a very pretty thorough-bred mare for forty 
guineas yesterday, at Tattersall's. 



No. 152. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

White LaddngUm, August 1, 1851. 

My dear Jack, 

I ARRIVED quite safely, yesterday afternoon, 
with my mind released by the prospect of being dear 
of the horrid town for a couple of months. 

How are you, dear Jack ? and what are to be my 
plans ? As I think at present, I propose staying here 
about a week ; by which time Johnson, who is now 
convalescent, will be strong, and they can take flight 
for Lyme. Then I will come to Downe Hall, with 
my hig box and horses. You must tell me about a 
stable — a good one— as near the mansion as may be; 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.a 107 

and the men can find lodgings attached or near. Then 
I stmH live on the road between the two places. Prior 
told me yon were thinking of taking a house at Brom>- 
ley for the winter. Where is Bromley ? 

Give me a line to say that you are all well ; and if 
you are ailing, and want me, I will come over. 
My best love to all. 

' Ever yours, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 153. 
John C. Temfler, Esq. 

White Laokington, August S, 1851. 

Mt bear Jack, 

I WILL come on Friday next ; but though our 
party here is anxious to see you, yet you must not 
overdo the drive, if it be inconvenient 

Will you come, as you propose, on Friday, and 
drive me back ? or will you meet me at Beaniinster, at 
4 o'clock P.M., to which I shall ride ? 

Here is a plam question, to which I want a pliun 
answ^. 

We can go and look for a house at Charmouth or 
Lyme, as my sister will follow me in a week^s time. 
Johnson is better; Charlie's leave, I am sorry to say, 
drawing to a close. 



108 PRIVATE L£TT£RS OF 

I am delighted to hear that you are better ; you are 
DOt meant to be ill. 

I feel Tcry gay and happy. We dine at three, and 
ride afterwards. Twenty-five miles, by Shrewsbury 
dock, the night before last, as I am a sinner. My 
love to all. 

Ever your Mend, 

J. Brooke. 

Many thanks for the st^^bles. 

The nags flourish. 



No. 154. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

White Lackington, Angost 31, 1851. 

Mt dear Jack, 

Lord ^ approves, nay, is eager for my 

departure for Siam ; so I have just written to say, that 
I shall be ready for the October mail, orders being 
sent to have the requisite vessels ready. 

It is of such importance, inapublic.point of view, 
that there ought to be no private regrets ; and I shall 
stipulate for my return^ when the mission is accom- 
plished. 

I do not think it is ungrateful to Old England, but 
my heart throbs with delight at the prospect of seeing 
them again in the East ; the unpleasant passage is lost 



SIR JAMES BROOKE^ K.G.B. 109 

sight of; and thus, the ills of this life should be for- 
gotten in the prospect of arriving at a better. I go to 
town on Tuesday next I shall then visit Norfolk till 
the 15th September, and return to London, which will 
be the best time, if you are stout, to come house* 
hunting. I shall curtail my Scotch trip, and be ready, 
as I said, by the 20th October for a start to Siam. 

I forgot to bring with me Mr. Wise's public letter 
to Lord John Russell, denouncing my proceedings. It 
is in the box ; will you send it to the United Service 
Club? Of course, I shall come for a few days to 
Downe Hall. 

Yours, very affectionately, 

J. Brooks. 



No, 155. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

United Service Club, September 6, 1S51. 

My dbar Jack, 

I LEAVE town to-morrow morning for Norfolk, 
but shall be back on the 14th or 15th. Will you 
meet me at Greenwich, look out for a house, and take a 
real good opinion on your own case. I had a long and 
comfortable conversation on the subject of cod's liver 
oil with Dr. Beith, of the hospital, who is an able man, 
and I have been longing that you should take three 



1 10 PBIYATE LKITEBS OF 

doses per diem. On Saturday I despatched a box of 
toys, for the little ones. I was first going to make 
lihem into four parcels, directed one to each, but the 
selection puzzled me, so tiiat I resoked to leave the 
distribution to papa and mama. Of eourse, Dora 
won't wish for ihe '^Lady Carolina Wilhelmina 
FurbisherV company I but nevertheless I meant it 
for her. 

In great haste, erer youts, my dear friend, affection* 
.ately and 4Bincerely, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 156- 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

9, Oroom^s Hill, Sq>tember 16, 1S51. 

My dear Jacgk:, 

I AM delighted to hear of your improvement, 
and I am not selfish enough to enforce what I wrote 
last ni^t. My plans are as follows. I shall stay in 
town till the 22nd, by #hich time my Siam business 
will be nearly completed. Till the 26th, I shall stay 
at Wotsley, and th^ go to Kilgraston, and be in town 
again on the 2nd or 3rd October, pack up and fini^ 
all that is to be done, and start about the 7th or 8th 
for the Isle of Wight, and thus give a day or two to 



SIR JAMES BKOOKE, K.C.B. 111 

Downe Hall and White Lackington^ before em- 
barking. 

Respecting the Eastern Archipelago Company ; the 
inefficiency of the Company, as well as the truck 
system, is fully proved by Coulson. Again, touching 
the grant of the sultan of Borneo, it is clear that it was 
obtained in order to develop the resources of Borneo, 
and cannot be held as an instrument of obstruction. 

Will you read my last journal, which is in the box, 
and rfiow such parts as you like to — — . Love to the 
dear children. 

Ever affectionately yours, 

J4 Brooke. 

With regard to the grant of the sultan of Borneo^ 
mentioned in this letter, a most interesting question 
had arisen between Sir James Brooke and the Directors 
of the Eastern Archipelago Company, and a long cor- 
resp<Hidence with the Colonial Department of Govern- 
ment ensued upon it. Sir James Brooke submitted a 
literal translation, (for the ori^nal was in the Malayan 
character,) and stated that in obtaining the grant from 
the sultan, he always understood it to convey a ri^t 
to work the mines only, and that it did not confer any 
exclusive privileges, and that such was the true inter- 
pretation of the instrument. On the other hand, the 
Directors submitted a free translation, and contended 
that its proper construction, gave them the exclusive 



112 



PRIVATE LETTERS OF 



right to the mines, and that they might work them, or 
keep them closed as they pleased, and the Colonial 
Department of the Government eventually arrived at 
this conclusion. It appears, however, that Sir James 
Brooke's view was the correct one after all, for after 
the official correspondence had closed he submitted the 
Directors' translation and his own to two eminent 
counsel, and received the following opinion on the in- 
terpretation of the instrument. 

The documents with the queries referring to ^'them, 
were stated as follows. 



The following is a free translation of the Malayan 
grant- 



State Seal 

of his 
Highness 

the 
Sultan of 
Borneo. 



This memorandum of agreement is recorded by 
Sultan Omar Allie Saferdui, son of Sultan Mahomed 
Jarmarhar AUum, deceased, of Borneo, by which 
the whole of the coal found in the country, extending 
from Mengkabong as far as Tanjong Barram is granted 
to James Brooke, Esq., the rajah of Sarawak, the coal 
to be considered at the entire disposal of Mr. Brooke, 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 113 

and his assigns, without any interference whatever on 
the part of the sultan, hut on the distinct understand- 
ing that the sultan is to receive, two thousand dollars 
for the first year the mines are opened and worked, and 
ever after the annual sum of one thousand dollars. 
Aiu/ust 23, 1846. 

The following is s, Uteral translation of the grant : — 

" This is an agreement of Tuam Sultan Omar Ali 
Saerfidin, the son of Sultan Mahomed Jarmarhar 
Allum, deceased, of the country of Brunie, promises to , 
give Tuam Sir James Brooke, Esq., rajah of Sarawak, 
coals from the coimtry of Mengkabong, as far as 
Tanjong Barram. 

" Whatever may be the spot he may work (the mine) 
or whoever of his relations (agents) Tuam Besar (Sir 
James) may authorize (to do the work), Tuam Sultan 
will not interfere. However, if Tuam Besar has 
worked at the commencement of the work, we Sir 
James are to give to Tuam Sultan two thousand dol- 
lars, the season following (he is) to give Tuam Sultan 
one thousand dollars (more), and (at every) each (suc- 
ceeding) season (year) the same. Written on Saturday 
the 30th of the month, Shaham, at four o'clock, in the 
Hejira, 1262.'^ 

A question has arisen — 

1st. Whether the grant is exclusive, so as to confer 



114 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

the right to all the coals found within those limits, so 
that whether the Eastern Archipelago Company work 
the mines or not, tfaey may exclude any third party 
from the field. 

2nd. And also as no limits landward are assigned 
by the grant, what limits would the law assign, and 
subject to what terms, if any. 

Your opinion is requested on each of the above 
points. 



Opinion. 

1. We are of opinion that the grant in the literal 
translation is not exclusive, but that as made to appear 
in the free translation, it would, if' valid in other re- 
spects, be exclusive. 

2. We are of opinion that no liniits landward can 
be assigned, and that tlie grant would according to the 
law of England, be void for uncertainty. 

At all events tlie grant does not, in our opinion, in- 
clude veins or beds of coal, not as to some parts of 
them lying or being upon a line drawn from one of the 
given points to the other. 

(Signed) Hugh Hill. 

James S. Willes. 
Inner Temple^ 

February 22y 1855. 



SIB lAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 115 

No. 157. 
John C. Templsr, Esq. 

9, Groom's Hill, September 80, 1851. 

Mt dear Jack, 

In consequence of news just received, that the 
king of Siam wished to bum his brother, before treating 
with us, the mission is postponed. I am glad of it ; 
and it gives us breathing time. I start to-moirow to 

Lord 's, where the case will follow me ; and from 

that, I shall go on to Scotland, and be back by the 8th 
or 10th of October. Will this suit you? or will you 
come up, and look for a house before my return? 

I am all abroad, as this palace of Miss 's only 

holds me till October. I think I shall take the 
cottage in the Park by the month ; but if you are not 
at Greenwich, my inducement to be here is gone. 

I have been dining regularly with Sir James 
Gordon, when disengaged ; and to-day St John comes 
to me. 

Direct to me, Worsley, near Manchester, till the 
25th. Kind regards to your party. 

Ever affectionately yours, 

J. Brooke. 

Delightful accounts of Sarawak and Lundu. 



116 PRIVATE LBTTEBS OF 



No. 158. 
John C. Templek, Esq. 

Kilgraston, Bridge of Earn, Perthshire, 
October 3, 1851. 

My dbar Jack, 

Scotland is delightful, and Kilgraston a 
charming place, whether as regards natore or society. 
I shall stay here till to-morrow week, as I am com- 
manded to dine with the of on Wednesday. 

Let me hear from you about your movements ; and 
if your house is not ready, pray take possession of the 
sylvan retreat in the Park, till it is. 

Ever your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 159. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Kilgraston, October 11, 1851. 

My dear Jack, 

I HAVE been waiting to hear from you, but no 
news,* they say, is good news ; and I hope you are 
strong and able to face the coming winter. 

I have been enjoying myself here, and to-day leave 

* The illness of the Editor is here aUuded to. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. • 117 

for Keir, which Walter Scott calls the " princely." 
On Monday I go to Edinburgh ; and then, after a visit 
or two, make my way to London, to my damp little 
cottage. Will you let me have a line from you, at 
6, Duke-street, Edinburgh ? 

Charlie Grant is in high feather ; and there is no 
end to dancing. The Scotch really dance. My kind 
love ; and, believe me, 

Ever your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 



During the winter of 1851, Mr. Hume continued to 
reiterate his attacks through the press i* and upon the 
opening of the session of 1852, renewed his efforts in 
the House to bring on a fresh motion for inquiry. The 
subject, however, was considered as fairly met, by the 
repeated decisions of the House ; and Mr. Hume's 
attacks savouring of persecution, the merchants of the 
city of London, to mark their sense of the high services 
Sir James Brooke had rendered his country, and the 
unworthy return he was receiving at the hands of a 
very small but persevering party, determined to ^ve 
him a public dinner ; and this was carried into effect 
OQ the 29th of April, 1852. The proceedings at this 
dinner will be found in Appendix No. 2. It was a 

* These led to some Tigorous letters from Sir James Brooke, 
which appeared at the time in the columns of the *' Times." 



1 18 • PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

great and glorious triumph. Sir James Brooke deE- 
vered a speech which, for truth and feeling, language 
and action, will never be forgotten by those who bad 
the privilege of hearing him. It created a general 
expression of regret, amongst a very select audience, 
that he had not made England, rather than Borneo, 
the field of his ambition ; and the feeling was current, 
that should a crisis ever arise in the fortunes of this 
country, he would be the man of action, who ought 
forthwith to be called to the councils of the nation. 



No. 160- 
Rev. Richard Coxe. 

White Lackington, Jannflry 22, 1852. 

Mv DEAR Richard, 

I HAVE taken the advice you gave me, in your 
last letter in very good partj and commenced my 
assault on the Eastern Archipelago Company, by 
moving Government to take some decided measure 
with respect to it. This £uled of producing any 
effect, which was not surprising, considering the expe- 
dient policy pursued in these latter days ; but notluAg 
discouraged, I called to mind Mr. Lindsay's chall^ige 
to Mr. Drummond^ to allow an inspection of the books 
and accounts of the immaculate Company, and I 
resolved to examine how it really stood. After a 



SIK JAMES BROOKE^. K*C.6. * 119 

woiid of trouble I have, with the assistance of Templer, 
laid the whole case bare, and a more rotten company 
is not to be found. We must now be guided by good 
counsel, either to file a bill in equity, or apply for a 
scire facias^ which is the mode of proceeding in the 
Queen's Bench, and will give us the power of a vivd 
voce examination. 

I have already had the best opinions on the legal 
question, which are decided, that the Charter cannot 
stand, and that a full exposure may render the direc- 
tors liable for the entire amount received from the 
shareholders. 

I believe the game is now in our hands, and it only 
remains, to use it justly and moderately. To me it is 
a matter of surprise, how I have bent myself, for the 
last three months to trace, step by step, all the doublings, 
through the intricacies of accounts and coimter-accounts 
— deeds of settlement — shareholders' lists — balance- 
sheets-^ and the like^ We began by a cold seent, but 
now it has warmed, so that we shall soon run into our 
game, be he lion, or be he fox. I wanted to give you 
this histoi^y, which will account for my time, since you 
heard last; and now that Z am going to Oxford, I 
want to know, where your brother Heiiry is td be found, 
when he is out of that vast library ? 

I am going, for the benefit of the air, to take up my 
quarters in Brighton, which wiB allow me to nm 



120 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

backwards and forwards to London, whenever it may 
be requisite, and at the same time, to enjoy my sister's 
society. I have been staying here for the last three 
days, trying to induce this party also to pass a couple 
of months there. I hope^ my dear Dick, you and 
yours are quite well. Write when you have time and 
inclination, and with kind regards. 

Believe me, ever your sincere friend, 

J. Brooke. 

P. S. I shall be in town to-morrow. 



No. 161. 
The Right Hon. Sidney Herbert, M.P. 

Maurigy's Hotel, Regent Street, 
Jane 22, 1852. 

Sir, 

From the lateness of the hour, my friends in 
the House of Commons were unable to offer any reply 
to the statements made by you, on the Labuan esti- 
mates on the 15th instant. I feel assured that it was 
not your intention to inflict an injury, and that you 
would not wish tiiat I should submit in silence, to im- 
putations, so unfounded and so derogatory to my repu- 
tation, as you have thought fit to advance. 

In all courtesy, therefore, I ask, and as an act of 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 121 

justice I trust you will not object to declare, on what 
grounds this statement rests, and that you will permit 
me to afibrd such explanations as may be requisite, not 
only on my own account, but on yours. 

You, Sir, would not desire to maintain a false accu- 
sation, and, on my part, I am anxious that the truth 
should be made known to yourself and to the world. 

According to the report in .the " Times," you af- 
firmed, on the occasion referred to, that I was a mer- 
chant whilst holding an office under Government, and 
that my " mercantile speculations " were opposed to 
the public interests. 

On this statement I beg to remark, that if by a 
merchant is meant a person who buys and sells for 
his own advantage, that I have never been a merchant 
at all ; and I most distinctly contradict the assertion 
that I have ever been engaged in " mercantile specula- 
lion" or pursuit since my appointment to office in 
1847. 

In the year 1845 1 was the unpaid agent of the 
English Government. In 1847 I was appointed 
Commissioner, and in Janu&.ry, 1848, became Go- 
vernor of Labuan. 

With these dates the following brief narrative will 
be better understood. 

In September, 1841, it became necessary that a 
revenue should be raised to support the expenses of 
VOL. in. G 



122 PBIVkTE LETTERS OF 

the new government of Sarawak, and this revenue was 
realized with the consent of the native chiefs. Owing, 
however, to the depressed condition of the population, 
the expenditure considerably exceeded the income; 
and in order to supply the deficiency of the public 
revenue, I (through agents appointed for the purpose, 
and in accordance with the custom of Malayan rulers) 
purchased the produce brou^t by the natives for 
sale. 

The entire proceeds derived from this expedient, 
were applied to defray the charges incurred by my 
unprecedented, but public position ; and the deficiency 
of the revenue, year after year, was made good from 
my private fortune. 

I leave you, Sir, to decide, whether in the ordinary 
application of language, it can be said I was trading at 
all, or trading for profit to be devoted to my own ad- 
vantage ; but there is ample evidence (at all times at 
your command) to prove that, from the first hour I 
undertook the goveniment, my desire was to place the 
revenues of Sarawak upon a secure basis. After en- 
countering many obstacles, I succeeded in carrying 
out my views on this subject, and in 1846, the antimony 
mines, the opium farm, and other inconsiderable items 
of revenue, were leased for five years, and, at the same 
period the trading operations on the public account 
were finally terminated. 



1 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 123 

In 1849, in consequence of the bankruptcy of the 
lessees, this lease reverted to Government, and in 
1850 the antimony mines were again let, whilst the 
opium farm has since continued to be managed by an 
officer of the Sarawak government. 

I should be happy to explain to you the system of 
revenue pursued in Sarawak ; but to avoid prolixity, 
I will content myself, on the present occasion, with the 
mention of the two principal sources whence it is de- 
rived, and upon which the question at issue between 
U8, may be judged. The antimony mines are analo- 
gous to the Crown mines of any other country ; the 
revenue from them accrues from the annual sum paid 
by the lessees ; the rights of individuals, whether Eu- 
ropean or native, are not violated, nor is the freedom 
of commerce in any manner infringed by the appro- 
priation of these mines for public purposes; and 
instead of being, as formerly, a forced labour monopoly 
for private use, they are now applied for the benefit of 
the people, by free labour supply. 

The opium farm is identical in principle, and not 
materially different in its operation, from the opium 
farm in the British settlements. It is a farm for the 
purposes of revenue on the retail sale of opium, and the 
right of retail sale rests in the Government, and is let 
to a farmer, or if a farmer cannot be found, is super- 
intended by a Government officer. 

g2 



124 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

I may add to this brief explanation, that the rerenue 
system of Sarawak, (although probably not the best that 
could be devised in theory, is suited to the state of 
society,) is, conjointly with myself, administered by the 
native chiefs, and is not complained of by the people ; 
and it must be with you. Sir, to show how a public 
revenue, realized as I have described, and applied to 
public purposes, can be termed a " mercantile specu- 
lation " in which I am personally engaged. 

If the revenues of Sarawak cover the annual ex- 
penses of the government^ I am content ; and if at 
any time one branch of the revenue should be su- 
perseded, the deficit would be supplied by some other 
tax imposed on the people; but it could in no way 
affect my personal interest, excepting as it affected the 
prosperity of the country. 

I have expended a very considerable sum from a 
limited private fortune, to maintain the government of 
Sarawak, and to relieve the sufferings of its people. I 
boldly afiirm that the secinity and happiness of a large 
population, now depends upon that go\'emment. I 
have refrained from imposing taxes, even to repay the 
sum I have laid out ; and at this present moment the 
revenue barely meets tlje expenditure, and the country 
is burdened with a debt. I have expended the greater 
portion of the salary I have received from the English 
Government to advance public objects ; I have made 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 125 

sacrifices in which I glory. I have gained nothing but 
the love of a rude and noble people, and the abuse and 
suspicion of my own countrymen. 

I blush to write this, but you force me to do so, 
when, after a life of danger, privation, and pecuniary 
sacrifice, you call me a trader — one engaged in " mer- 
cantile speculations,*' contrary to duty and to honour, 
and contrary to the interests of the public. 

I repeat that I am convinced that you did not desire 
to injure me, or to misrepresent the facts; but I will 
now ask you, as a man of honour (whose opinion I do 
not undervalue), to inform me on whose authority 
these charges are made, and by what evidence they 
are supported. 

I, on my part, will make good what I have now ad- 
vanced whenever I am called upon, and prove that a 
public revenue cannot be confounded, without injustice, 
with private trade ; and that I have never been engaged 
in any " mercantile speculation " or pursuit, since my 
appointment to office in the year 1847. 
I have the honour to be. Sir, 

Your obedient and humble servant, 

J. Brooke. 

The Right Hon. Sidney Herbert, 

P.S. The trial in the Queen's Bench will explain 
my not having addressed you earlier on the subject 



126 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 



Belgrave Square, Thursday night, 
June 24, 1852. 

Sir, 

I FOUND, on ray return from the House of 
Commons yesterday morning, the letter which you 
have done me the honour to address to me. 

I regret that the observations, which I thought it my 
duty to make, on a question of public policy, should be 
considered by you to be injurious to yourself. 

I certainly am not conscious of having in any way 
impugned your motives. It was not my intention to 
do so. 

The question which I raised was this : — ^Whether 
your engagements and interests at Sarawak are of a 
nature to justify your appointment as governor of the 
neighbouring island of Labuan? and whether your 
selection for that oflEice is conformable with the prin- 
ciples, which are understood to regulate the choice of 
civil servants of the Crown in our colonial possessions ? 

I must confess that your letter has by no means 
tended to satisfy me on that point. 

I understand that the occurrences in Borneo and 
Labuan will shortly be the subject of an investigation, 
in which the particular point to which I have referred 
would necessarify be included. 

Under these circumstances I am sure you will feel 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 127 

that I should not be justified in entering into any cor- 
respondence on the subject. 

I have the honour to be, 

Your obedient servant, 

Sidney Herbert. 

Sir J. Brooke, K.C.B. 



No. 162. 
The Right Hon. Sidney Herbert, M.P. 

Reigate, June 26, 1852. 

Sir, 

I BEG to acknowledge your reply of the 24th 
instant to my letter. 

It would have afibrded me satisfaction, had you 
either denied the charge which you have not supported, 
or supported the charge which you have not denied. 

I am sorry that this point still continues in some 
degree of obscurity. 

If you used the expressions attributed to you, of 
which I had so just a right to complain, I beg once 
more to offer a positive and unequivocal contradiction 
to them ; but ifi as I infer from your note, you did not 
use those expressions, you must regret, even more than 
I do, that the " Times " newspaper, instead of report- 
ing the simple question you raised, should so have per- 
verted your speech in the House of Commons, as to 



128 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

make it appear a charge, alike injurious and derogatory 
to my reputation. 

In justice to yourself, some precaution should be 
taken to prevent the recurrence of a similar error in 
Hansard's report of the debate referred to. 

My motives you are at liberty to impugn at all limes 
according to your pleasure ; but what I cannot permit 
to pass in silence is a misrepresentation of the truth, 
resting on your authority, or appearing to do so, from 
a newspaper report. 

The question which you acquaint me you raised in 
the House of Commons, was entirely different from the 
statement you are reported to have made, in the course 
of your speech ; and as you appear averse either dis- 
tinctly to affirm, or distinctly to deny, this statement, I 
will not press the subject further. 

" Whether " (as you state) " my engagements and 
interests at Sarawak are of a nature to justify my ap- 
pointment as governor of the neighbouring island of 
Labuan, and whether my selection for that office be 
conformable with the principles which are understood 
to regulate the choice of civil servants of the Crown in 
our colonial possessions," I leave you, Sir, and others 
whose duty it may be, to discuss and to decide ; but it 
is certain that the position I occupied was known pre- 
viously to the year 1847, and since that year it has 
remained unchanged. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 129 

In 1845, although cognizant of the circumstances, 
the Government of the late Sir Robert Peel, of which 
you were a member, conferred upon me a public oflSce. 
In 1848 Her Majesty's late Ministers not only selected 
me for the appointment of governor of Labuan, but 
they thanked me for the services I had rendered, 
and placed on record that my position at Sarawak was 
advantageous to the interests of this nation ; and now, 
should Her Majesty's present Government think fit to 
reverse the policy or the appointment of their prede- 
cessors, it may be done without difficulty, and without 
acrimonious feelings being excited on a public ques- 
tion. 

I hold my appointments for the public good, and 
only so long as I possess the confidence of the Queen's 
Government and of the country ; and you may rest 
assured that so long as I continue in office, I shall never 
shrink from the responsibilities of a stem duty, whether 
it be to punish a pirate or expose a fraud. 

I shall await with calmness the investigation which 
you inform me is about to take place. I was pre- 
viously as ignorant of the fact, as I still am (though a 
party somewhat interested) of its nature and object ; 
but I shall offisr no objection to it, should it be con- 
sistent with the principles of justice and the dictates of 
honour ; but you must permit me to add that the re- 
vival, year after year, under unaltered circumstances, 

g3 



130 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

of the same charges, is as little in accordance with 
right principle, as it is with the English character. 

Having attained the object I had in yiew, I shall 
now lay the truth before the public, as fearless of con- 
sequences, as I am unchangeably impressed with the 
proper course of public duty and of private rectitude. 
I have the honour to be, Sir, 
&c. &c. &c. 

J. Broqke. 

The Right Hon. Sidney Herbert. 



Wilton House, July 1, 1852. 

Sir, 

I WISH that there should be no misunderstand- 
ing, as to the observations made by me in the House of 
Commons. 

I have stated in my previous letter, what was the 
question which I raised to your position in Borneo, in 
the debate to which you have alluded. 

In raising that question, I stated that the perusal of 
public documents left an impression on my mind, that 
you were engaged in trading at Sarawak, and I ap- 
pealed to the Government to institute an inquiry into the 
matter, as such an engagement on your part could not 
be otherwise than prejudicial to the interests of the 
Crown at Labuan. 

Your letters to me have strengthened this impression. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 131 

I beg, therefore, to decline any further controversy, 
on a matter which will again be a subject of discussion 
in Parliament, and where it will be my duty to show 
the grounds, oa which my opinion rests. 
I have the honour to be, 

Your obedient servant, 

Sidney Herbert. 

Sir James Brooke, K.C.B. 



No. 163. 
The Right Hon. Sidney Herbert, M.P. 

Reigate, July 2, 1852. 

Sir, 

In order to avoid controversy, I had the honour 
to inform you in my last communication that, as you 
appeared averse either distinctly to affirm, or distinctly 
to deny, the statement made by you in the House of 
Commons, that I would press the subject no further. 

Your note of yesterday removed the ambiguity 
which previously existed ; and as you now grant the 
report in the " Times " to be correct, I must remind 
you, that when stopped by Sir John Pakington, you 
were supporting your allegations from a private paper, 
and not from a public document. 

I desire that the truth should be made known ; and 
when you bring the subject once more before Parlia- 



132 PBIVATE LETTEES OF 

ment, I trust that an opportunity may be afibrded to 
my friends in the House, to offer a reply to your 
statements. 

The question has been repeatedly discussed during 
the last three years ; and having been before one Com. 
mittee of the late House of Commons, it appears from 
your letters that it is again to be discussed and re* 
ferred anew, to a Committee of the Parliament not yet 
elected. 

The Parliament will doubtless require at your hands, 
such grounds in support of your opinion, as will warrant 
a new inquiry,, and clearly mark the distinction be- 
tween justice and persecution. 

* The public will now be enabled to weigh the facts 
I have advanced, against the impressions you have re- 
ceived, and to decide whether a public revenue is to 
be treated as a " mercantile speculation." 

I have the honour to be, &c., 

J. Brooke. 

The Right Honourable Sidney Herbert, 
&c. &c. 



* This correspondence was intended for publication in the daily 
papers, but it was withdrawn in consequence of the general elec- 
tion engrossing the public attention. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, E.C.a 133 



No. 164. 
Rev. Richard Coxe. 

Reigate, July 3, 1852. 

My DEAR Richard, 

I AM pretty well, spite of my labours and trial, 
and these^ too, are drawing to a close. I came to issue 
with the Eastern Archipelago 0)mpany, and com- 
menced proceedings in the Queen's Bench, upon which 
the directors, a power Ail body, from their rankj position^ 
and character^ abused me in every possible way, and 
moved heaven and earth to change the trial from the 
Queen's Bench to the House of Commons ; they peti- 
tioned Parliament against me, and on the 15th, on 
the Labuan estimates, Wilson Patten and Sidney 
Herbert urged the Government to interfere ; on the 
16th and 17th, they used every interest to stop the 
legal proceedings, but failed ; and on the 19th I got 
them into the Queen's Bench, face to face ; and the 
" Times " of yesterday will tell you, with what result. 
I have since had a correspondence with Sidney 
Herbert, which you will read and judge of for yourself. 
I have played a bold game with great caution, and have 
proved successful against long odds ; but right, was in 
the scale against wrong, and Old England is Old Eng- 
land still. I shall be moving to Scotland in August, 
and will stop with you on the way. 



134 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

I have taken a house here for three months, and 
though, as yet I have not had much of it, enjoy the re- 
pose more than any one, less jaded, can understand. 
After the elections, I shall seek a final explanation with 
the Government. K I possess their confidence, and an 
efficient course of action promising good results, is 
entered on, I will continue in the public service — ^if not, 
I shall seek that repose and that independence, which 
I prize above ambition, and above silver and gold. I 

met the other day, when pressed with business, 

and had only time to shake him hurriedly by the hand. 
My kind regards to them all, and believe me. 
Your affectionate friend, 

James Brooke. 



No. 165. 
Miss Dora Templer. 

Reigate, July 25, 1852. 

My dear Miss Dora, 

I HAVE a great secret to tell you, which you 
must not tell to anybody, excepting to Jemmy, and 
Jemmy can whisper it to Harvey, and Harvey can 
inform Freddy, and Freddy can bawl it into Georgie's 
ear — if you find it very difficult to keep this secret, 
tell it too, to papa and mamma. 
The secret is this — papa is going to pass a month in 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, E.0.6. 135 

Sootland, and mamma wishes very much to go with 
him, but she is not able, because she has five children 
to take care of. Now, I think, as you are all very 
good, that you might each take a basin of gruel 
and go quietly to bed, for a whole month, and be quiet 
until mamma comes back. Is not this a nice plan ? 
You may tell mamma about it, and ask her advice 
whether you may not go to bed for a month. 

With my best love to the dear boys. Believe me, 
my dear Dora, 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 166. 
Rev. Richard Coxe. 

Beigate, August 14, 1852. 

My dear Richard, 

I HAVE had several interviews with ministers, 

and crowned them all with one with Lord ; 

but, as yet, there has been no result. They were all 
very polite, I may say kind, and appear to enter into 
my views ; but the groundwork of my position was, that 
they might avail themselves of my services if they 
choose ; and if not, that I would be obliged to them to 
make up their minds, and let me take an independent 
course. If employed, I insisted on confidence and 



136 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

efficiency — ^reality and not pretence— and a remedy for 
the anomalous position in which I was placed Iff my 
being 0)n8ul-General, with plenipotentiary powers, &c, 
&c. They will soon give me an answer, and I will let 
you know, what it is. At the same time I offered, for 
the good of the public service, and to set the question 
at rest, to submit to a committee of the House of Com- 
mons ; this ministers will likewise consider. Yesterday 
(10th) there was a long correspondence of mine with 
the judges of Singapore, published — all very wrong and 
shameful in the opinion of the " Daily News," because 
the shoe pinches on that quarter ; but I believe that 
you, and every other high-minded and honest man, will 
commend me for the principles I asserted, at no small 
personal inconvenience. On Wednesday I am going 
to Scotland, and, as I come back, I shall stop with you 
at Newcastle, giving you due notice — but do not bother 
yourself about my accommodation. What about our 
dinner ? I should like it early in October. 

Farewell. My kind regards to all your party, and 
believe me, my dear Richard, 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 137 

No. 167. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Newcastle, September 14, 1852. 

My dear Jack, 

I HAVE postponed my return from Tuesday to 
Wednesday, that I may enjoy the society of Coxe and 
his family a little longer.. 

I hope you got home safely and comfortably. I 
found a supper and hot negus awaiting me at New- 
castle, and thought of you during the watches of the 
night, and of your release at ten. Kindest regards, 
And ever affectionately yours, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 168. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Reigate, October 7, 1852. 

Mt dear Jack, 

The weather has been, and is so wretched, 
that I the less regret my not having been able to get 
westward for the present. The Ministry will be in 
town the end of this week, and my affairs will then be 
decided ; I have sent in a long report of the details for 
the suppression of piracy, and I have now a translation 
of a letter from the Government of Brune, which proves 



138 PKIVATE LETTERS OF 

Mr. Bums' and Mr. Motley's joint letter to Mr. Hume, 
to have been a fabrication. How are you all ? and 
when do you return ? 

Farewell. I do not bother you, or myself by writing 
at large, for you ought to enjoy yourself, and I am 
going driving in my pony chaise. Love to your 
party ; and, 

Ever your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 

P. S. I am expecting Grant ; but for the last week 
I have been out of spirits, from the intelligence of the 
death of my poor friend Elliot — whom you knew— a 
fine, true-hearted fellow. 



No. 169. 
Rev. Richard Coxe, 

Reigate, November 9, 1852. 

My dear Richard, 

I SHALL positively be in town on Friday. Will 
Philip* and yourself come and dine with me, at the hotel 
on that day at half-past seven ? 

The pinch of my political existence is at hand ; next 
week, the argument and decision on the Charter of the 
Eastern Archipelago Company, will be over — it will be 

* A brother of the Archdeacon. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 139 

in my favour, and terminate in the repeal of the charter. 
Then comes the question, whether Government will 
grant these convicted directors a new charter ? If it 
does, of course I retire. This keeps me busy, but, 
having made up my mind, not anxious. Certainty is 
a comfortable thing. In haste. 

Ever affectionately yours, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 170. 
Rev. Richard Coxe. 



HiUingdon Grove, near Uxbridge, 
December 27, 1852. 

My dear Richard, 

How are you this season, which should be a 
cheerful one ? I shall be rejoiced to hear you are en- 
joying it. 

For myself, I have been much troubled by the cease- 
less fluctuations of the political world, which reflect 
their uncertainty upon me. I am npw all abroad, as to 
my future course ; but I day by day gain the experience 
required, and learn how little dependence can be placed 
on the English Government, or on English politics. I 
shall not, therefore, regret parting company, on my own 
account, or on account of Sarawak, but at seeing a 



140 PKIVATE LETTERS OF 

rational and noble policy thrown away, amid the conten- 
tions of &ction, and popular institutions. 
I have been here for the last week, and confined to 

my couch, or nearly so, with influenza and other ills. 

« 

I am, however, better, but in no mood for writing, mi 
I only scrawl these lines to tell you my news, and to 
wish you happiness and health, present and future, at 
this season. 

My kind regards to Mrs. Coxe and your family 
circle, and believe me, my dear Dick, 

Yours ever effectionately, 

J. Brooke. 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 141 



CHAPTER V. 
Febbuaby, 1853. 



Throughout the winter of 1852 the persecution of 
Sr James Brooke continued, led by Mr. Hume and 
the Directors of the Eastern Archipelago Company, 
whose charter by the judgment of the Queen's Bench 
had been declared to be repealed ; against this judg- 
ment, the Directors appealed to the Court of the 
Exchequer Chamber,* and were thus, under the name 
of the Company, still enabled to gain access to the 
Government departments. At the commencement of the 
session of 1853, a change of ministry took place; and 
Mr. Hume, who had met with no encouragement 
from its predecessor, apparently obtained the ear of the 
present Government, with reference to Sir James 
Brooke. His mode of attack, however, was as novel, 
as it was unconstitutional, and consisted in writing 
vituperative letters to the heads of the departments, 
and then moving in his place in Parliament, for the 

* The judgment of the Queen's Bench in Sir James Brooke's 
favour, has been confirmed by a majority of seven to one of the 
judges in the Exchequer Chamber.— See Editor's note, p. 175, post. 



142 PBIVATE LETTERS OF 

printing of such letter^. This was generally granted, 
apparently without much examination or knowledge of 
what the letters contained, and in this way libel upon 
libel on Sir James Brooke was printed at the expense 
of the nation, while it was diflScult to prosecute Mr. 
Hume, by reason of his privilege of Parliament. At 
length, however, Mr. Hume printed and caused to be 
privately circulated, some copies of a pamphlet, con- 
taining all his charges against Sir James Brooke ; and 
one of these falling into Sir James's hands, he took 
the opinion of counsel upon it — That opinion is given 
in the note to p. 196 {j)Ost\ Sir James Brooke 
acted upon it, and, instead of taking any legal pro- 
ceeding against Mr. Hume, for the libellojis matter 
contained in the pamphlet, he addressed to Mr. Drum- 
mond the following four letters, numbered 171, 172, 
173, and 174, as a vindication of his character and 
proceedings. 

(No. 1.) No. 171. 

Henry Drummond, Esq., M.P. 

My dear Sir, 

Mr. Hume has printed a pamphlet containing 
a repetition of all the charges which for several years 
he has preferred against me ; and although I had 
resolved no further to notice what this gentleman 
might either say or do, I have, on reflection, changed 



SIB JiJfES BBOOKi:, E.aB. 143 

my mind, in the hope that n^y present labour may 
tend to my future ease ; and that it may afford to all 
those who really desire to make Uiemselves acquainted 
with the subject, an easy reference to the documents 
connected with it. 

It is however necessary, in the first place, to explain 
the circumstances under which this discussion arose, 
and whence it has since been protracted to an inter- 
minable length, and a perplexing entanglement to the 
cursory inquirer. 

In 1848, 1 was encouraged by the public approba- 
tion, by memorials from the principal commercial asso* 
dations in the kingdom, and by the express sanction 
of the Government of the coxmtry, to undertake a de- 
cisive course of policy for the suppression of piracy. 

In 1849, in pursuance of this duty, the punishment 
of the Serebas pirates — a measure both previously and 
subsequently approved by Her Majesty's ministers — 
was successfully accomplished. Mr. Hume then, for 
the first time, stepped forward as my public accuser 
in Parliament. Ample time was afforded him to col- 
lect all the evidence on the subject which could be 
procured ; and no effort was spared, to render it of a 
sufiSciently condemnatory character, to justify a demand 
for inquiry. Mr. Hume's motions were fully and 
solemnly discussed in 1850 and 1851, and on both 
occasions they were rejected by nearly unanimous 



144 PRIVATE LEITEBS OF 

majorities, conclusiyely demonstrating the sense of the 
House of Commons and of the country. 

It appears to me a grievous injury inflicted on an 
individual and on the public interest, to repeat the 
same charges with the same absence of testimony; 
and, in order to prove the injustice of the course pur- 
sued by Mr. Hume, I need only recapitulate, the ac- 
cusations which, session after session, and year after 
year, he has heaped upon me. The first grave charge 
which Mr. Hume advanced, was to the effect, that / 
had massacred innocent people^ falsely asserting them 
to be pirates. This charge having for a time been dis- 
missed, he endeavoured to prove that I was a mer- 
chant whilst engaged in the public service.. He next 
asserted that an unnecessary loss of life had been 
inflicted in the action of July 1849 ; he afterwards 
cavilled at the title by which I hold Sarawak ; he has 
accused me of cold-blooded murders; he has de- 
nounced me for neglect of public duty ; for abuse of 
oflScial power; for impeding the progress of commercial 
enterprise ; and for establishing a trading monopoly ; 
and added to this frightful category of crime and of 
misdemeanour, he seeks to convict me " out of my 
own mouth " of bad motives, ambitioizs designs, vio- 
lence, tyranny, falsehood, injustice, and petty larceny. 

Never probably before has a civilized man been so 
unfortunate as to have charged upon him, at one and 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 145 

the same time, so varied a list of offences ; and yet a 
repetition of these charges is to be found in the pam- 
phlet, privately printed^ and piivately circulatedy with 
letters of recommendation from Mr. Hume, addressed to 
exalted personages, whose ill opinion would most injure 
me, and best advance the object at which he aims. 

I will leave it with impartial persons to decide 
whether such a course can be reconciled to the princi- 
ples of justice, to the maxims of English law, or to the 
sense of English fair play ; and I shall content myself 
with the remark that, in my opinion, Mr. Hume im- 
pedes his own success, and prevents the possibility of 
a fair inquiry by the indiscriminating extravagance of 
his assertions, and by tlie virulence with which he 
urges them against me. It is true that he has, with a 
clumsy solemnity, staked his reputation on the purity 
of his motives ; but in doing so, he has overlooked 
what others cannot fail to perceive, namely, the deep 
personal interest he must have in establishing the charges 
he has preferred; for if I be innocent^ then Mr. Hume 
is guilty — guilty of the serious offence of repeating ac* 
cusations, alike the most grave and the most trivial, 
against his fellow-man, upon evidence which has been 
twice weighed by Parliament, and twice rejected. 

I am desirous, however, of avoiding Mr. Hume's 
acrimony of expression. I am not unwilling to give 
him credit for being ignorant of the real motives which 

VOL. III. H 



146 PBrVATE LETTERS OF 

actuate him : and I am inclined to plead in his favour 
that pertinacity of vnll which is too often the misfor- 
tune, and not the fault, of advanced age. 

I propose referring, in the Notes, to the sources for 
procuring complete information on the various sub- 
jects under discussion ; and in refutation of the first 
charge of the massacre of innocent people, I shall 
content myself with an array of the positive testimo- 
nies, to establish the piratical character of the Serebas 
community, and the specific acts of piracy committed 
by it.* 

1. Mahomed Kassim — Piracy thirty years ago. 

2. Mr. Windsor Earl, 1836. 

3. Monsieur Comet de Groot, 1839 — Secretary- 
General to the Netherland Colonial Minister. 

4. Sir James Brooke, 1839, 1840. 

♦ Papers presented to the House of Commons relating to Piracy; 
Foreign Ofi&ce, 5th Feb., April, 11th Jime, 15th August. — Notices 
Historiques sur les Pirateries, 1816 to 1845 — Presented to both 
Houses of Parliament, July 1851 — Additional Papers respecting the 
operations against the Pirates, presented to both Houses, 1851 — 
Borneo Piracy: Further Correspondence, presented to the House of 
Commons, 30th June, 1852 — In continuation of Papers presented 
23rd March, 1852— Colonial Office: No. 378, 6th June, 1851— 
Admiralty: presented to the House of Commons, 11th Feb. 
No. 53; 15th April, No. 239— Vide Note signed D. B. Woolsey, 1851; 
15th November; 16th November, 1852— Hansard's Reports, 10th 
July, 1851— Edinburgh Review, July 1852 — " Visit to the Indian 
Archipelago," by Captain the Hon. Henry Keppel, R.N., Chap. ix. 
to xiv. 



SIB JAMES BBOOEE, K.C.B. 147 

5. Captain Keppel, 1843, 1844. 

6. The Rajah Muda Haasim, 1843, 1844. 

7. Mr. Church, 1843 — Resident Councillor of 
Singapore. 

8. Tay Song Que — Commander of a Chinese 



9. Colonel Butterworth, 1844 — Governor of Sin- 
gapore. 

10. Dawich 1 Commanders of prahus from the 

11. Mahdout j N.W. coast of Borneo. 

12. Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane. 

13. The Sultan of Borneo ] Subsequently to the 

14. The Pangeron Makoto J action of 1849. 

15. Mr. Louis Jackson-^-Civil Service of Bengal, 
1849. 

16. Mr. Urban Vigors, 1852. 

17. Siup— captured after the action. 

18. AbangBit 1 ^ , ., 

-, r. i. , ^ r Serebas Men. 

19. Abang Buyong J 

20. Asin — a Chinese, formerly of Sambas.* 

21. The decision of the Court of Admiralty in Sin- 
gaporct 

To this list I may add, that in 1850 I received the 

♦ The Parliamentary Papers wiU foniish more depositions than 
are here noticed. 

t If the decision of a Court of Justice on a simple matter of fact 
is not conclusive, where is the safety of the subject ? where the 
right of property to be Insured ? 

H2 



148 PBIVATE LETTERS OF 

approval of Her Majesty's Ministers, with instructioDs 
from Lord Palmerston to repeat the same measure 
when it should again become necessary.* 

I need scarcely tell Mr. Hume that a fact cannot be 
more than proved, and if this £eict be not established, 
there has not been, nor can there ever be, an esta- 
blished fact in the world. 

On the second charge, of the unnecessary sacrifice 
of life, I reply : — 

That there is no testimony whatever in support of 
it ; as Mr. Urban Vigors, who was formerly asserted to 
be an evidence in its favour, has now stated as follows : 
" No man " (writes this gentleman) " can entertain 
a greater horror of unnecessary bloodshed than I do, 
and yet I do not for one moment hesitate to express 
my most unqualified approbation of all that was done 
in that expedition ; the lesson was a severe one, but I 
am satisfied that it was necessary."t 

It is proved that I was several miles from the scene 
of action — that the following morning I stopped the 
pursuit, and rejected a proposal to effect the destruction 
of the pirates ; J that rewards were given for prisoners ; 

* Parliamentary Papers: F. O. Moved for, but not yet presented 
to the House of Commons, 1853. 

f Parliamentary Papers: F. 0. Moved for, but not yet presented 
to the House of Commons — " Visit to the Indian Archipelago," 
Appendix. 

i Statement of Captain Farquhar. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 149 

that they were well treated, and after a time, dismissed 
to their homes. 

I was not a witness of the action, and had no control 
over it; how then could I, in any case, he held 
responsible for what occurred ? 

The third charge is for murder. 

Crimes were committed in Sarawak of the most 
aggravated character,* causing a loss of life, and 
threatening the peace of society, by the defiance of 
a humane law, forbidding bloodshed. The criminals 
were tried and executed, after the deliberation of 
several days; and this^ because the trial was not 
specifically mentioned in a desultory diary, has been 
termed " murder^'* with a view to my ruin, under cir- 
cumstances of peculiar and premeditated treachery ! f 

Mr. Hume has still another story, advanced on 
the authority of a Singapore paper : " that in 1846 
** by uttering the words, let them diey I ordered, or 
caused vo be put to death, without any form of 
trial, three prisoners taken in the attack on Brune." 
I do not envy Mr. Hume the authority on which he 
has advanced so grave an accusation, and he must 
surely himself allow, that if a public man were on 

* Parliamentary Papers: Colonial Office, presented to the House 
of Commons, 17tli May, 1852, No. 357, pp. 117, 118. 

t Idem, p. 117. — Letter from Mr. J. A. St. John and the Rev. 
Francis McDougall. 



150 PRIVATE LHTTTERS OF 

every occasion to resort to a legal remedy to acquit 
himself from the imputations thrown out against him, 
that the business of the country would be impeded, 
and the Courts of Law kept in constant employment 
The editor in question has been repeatedly challenged 
to produce proof, or to name his informant, but has 
never done either — and yet this barren assertion, 
contained in a newspaper, Mr. Hume considers a 
sufficient ground to warrant him in demanding a 
Parliamentary inquiry I 

The real circumstances I must briefly relate. 
The men mentioned were not made prisoners by the 
English force, but were subsequently arrested by 
the order of Pangeran Mumein, and others, who 
were administering the government of the city, whilst 
it was occupied by the naval Commander-in-Chief. 

The fact was notified to Sir Thomas Cochrane, who 
declined interfering with the administration of justice ; 
and the criminals, who had been actors in the murder 
of a branch of the Royal family, were executed, we 
may presume in accordance with the usual procedure 
in that country. 

For myself, I may say, that I knew neither the 
names nor the persons of the men mentioned, and 
neither uttered the words, "let them die," or "let 
them live ;" being ignorant of the circumstances which 
induced the arrest or the execution. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 161 

(No. 2.) No. 172. 

Henry Drummond, Esq., M.P. 

My dear Sir, 

On the fourth charge, namely, that I have 
been engaged in trade whilst holding a public oflSce, I 
must dwell at somewhat greater length. 

If by a merchant be meant a person who buys 
and sells for his own profit, then I have never been 
a merchant at all. 

In the year 1845 I was the unpaid agent of the 
English Government ; in 1847 I was appointed Com- 
missioner, and Consul-General ; and in 1848 became 
Governor of Labuan. 

With these dates, the following brief narrative will 
be better understood. 

In 1841, 1 stated that the yearly expenses atten- 
dant on the government of Sarawak would be from 
4000Z to 50007. I disclaimed all personal views of 
advantage, and offered the country to the English 
Government, or to others, able, if willing, to enter on 
the task : I declared that I sought to advance an 
object, which I considered to be recommended both by 
policy and humanity, and " after devoting time and 
fortune," I hoped that " having borne all the brunt, I 
should not be left to bear the burden likewise." 



162 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

Should I, however, fail in arousing sympathy, I pro- 
fessed my readiness to proceed without help, although, 
as I then wrote, " I must seek to raise the necessary 
expenses by entering into trade^ in which case my 
position vDOuld be less ir^aential^ and less useful^ than 
it would otherwise be, and my attention distracted^ by 
details foreign to my principal object y* 

In this early stage of my undertaking, I might 
have been justly styled a merchant ruler (no un- 
common character in those countries), resorting to 
trade in order to supply a deficit in the public revenue ; 
but I could never, in the received acceptation of the 
term, be called a merchant, engaged in trade on my 
own account, or for my own profit ; for, on the con- 
trary, so late as the year 1851, there was an excess of 
expenditure over receipts, which I willingly made good 
from my private fortune. 

Before confidence was established, and the measure 
could be justified by the general increase of prosperity, 
the imposition of additional taxes would have disturbed 
the population of the country; and the trading on 
Government account, for the same reason, was lefl 
entirely to the option of the natives, who were always 
permitted to dispose of their produce to the highest 
bidder. 

* Letter addressed to James Qardner, Esq., published in 1842, 
pp. 5, 6, 36, 37, 38, 40. 



Sm JAMES BBOOKE, K-CB. 153 

There is the clearest and fullest testimony of my 
reluctance to arail myself of this means of defraying 
a portion of the inevitahle expenses of the Government, 
and of my efforts to absolve myself from the respon- 
sibility, by placing the revenues of Sarawak upon a 
more permanent basis.* 

This object was finally accomplished on the 1st 
September, 1846 ; the trading operations on account 
of Government were finally closed, and the antimony 
mines, and opium farm, &c. leased for five years. 

I cannot close this portion of the subject better 
than by quoting three short extracts from the cor- 
respondence at that time carried on between my agent 
in England and myself. The first bears date the 4th 
December, 1845, when I wrote as follows : — 

'^ At the same time you must bear in mind that if 
you endeavour to keep me mixed up in trading 
matters, that you cannot expect success, for you must 
work with the grain and not against it, and you icell 
know that from my temper^ habits^ and education^ 1 am 
averse to and incapable of all matters relating to com-^ 
merce, I assure you I would rather return to England^ 
and live in poverty and retirement^ than continue subject 
to the Jhuiuations and anxieties of commerce. You may 

* A yoluminouB private correspondence, a small part of which 
has been published in the Appendix to the Report of the Army and 
Ordnance Committee. 

h3 



154 PRIVATE LETTJSRS OF 

be sanyfar this, but you cannot aJter my nature or my 
feelings^ and you will therefore, lam sure, seriously put 
ycmr shoulder to the wheel to clear me from my preseid 
position.^^ 

What that position was may be judged from the 
following extract, dated on the 16th March, 1846. — 
"I consider myself" (I wrote) "representing the 
Government of Sarawak, and a Government with a 
moderate suflScient revenue, is more stable, than with 
a larger one, subject to fluctuation."* 

♦ The following extracts from my correspondence with my 
agent will further prove my views and sentiments. 

15th October, 1845. — " I cannot soar about money matters, and 
my mind is seriously disturbed and injured by the fluctuations, 
and even the very discussion of commercial matters, in which I am 
mixed up. This then my desire should be effected as soon as 
possible." — My desire was to be relieved from responsibility, by 
the lease of the mines, &c. 

10th February, 1846. — "I am not blind to the advantages that 
might accrue to myself, nor do I undervalue riches, but I cannot 
be swayed by them. Did such considerations sway me, I should 
be unfit to be where I am, and had they swayed me, it is most 
probable I should not be here at aU. All the advantages which 
may accrue from farming of antimony ore, &c. you can share with 
others, who are capitalists. I want nothing beyond what I have 
stated at present— the due reward of my labour^— and I look 
forward to increase my revenue, together voith the prosperity of Sarawak,** 
I had stated the rental for the antimony mines^ opium farm, work- 
ing diamonds, &c. &c. at 2,500/. per annum. 

No man relinquishes the golden dreams you have held up to my eyes 
without a sigh — no man would relinquish them, excepting from a sense 
that he MOOS doing right. [Then 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K-CB. 156 

To this communioation my agent replied on the 24th 
June, 1846. "The accomplishment of your wishes" 
(he stated) " on this subject will I trust terminate 
the anxiety you have so frequently expressed^ to be clear 

Then again, on the 1st March, 1846, after alluding to the pro- 
posed Company, by means of which I was to become " one of the 
wealthiest commoners in England" I wrote as follows : — 

"You may rightly reap an advantage from this, or any other 
enterprise of a similar nature, but so essentially different is the 
position in whidi I am placed, that I could not do so without the 
losa of reputation, not only in the opinion of the world, but likewise 
in my own estimation. — / am pledged to the good government of 
Sarawak, and X am hound not to risk the welfare of this people for any 
motives, whether of cupidity or ambition, I repeat again, I can in no- 
wise participate in profits which may arise out of the formation of a . 
company, or any other project, which may be started in England, 
for it is incumbent upon me to remain independent," 

The truth is, that preyiously to these projects being started, and 
the offer made me of realizing vast wealth — ^' a princely fortune"-^ 
by my participation in them, I had never seriously considered the 
duty which I had to perform towards Sarawak — and, I may add, 
towards Englandr^circumstajices altered with a rapidity unknown 
under established governments— to afford protection to Sarawak, 
and to save myself from the ruin which threatened, I would, in 
1842 or 1843, have made over the government, which had cost me 
thotisands, to a Company, for a few shares in the scheme ; but in 
1846 I would not have done so, for the people were happy ; diffi- 
culties and dangers had been surmoimted, and there was an ap- 
proach to the permanency which I desired in the state of things. The 
difficulties of my position, with the change of circumstances, should 
be borne in mind, when a judgment is formed of any particular 
event, as separated from the general course of my career. I leave 
these extracts — a few amongst many of the like tenor in my cor- 
respondence^to the consideration of the candid reader. 



156 PRIVATE LETTEBS OP 

of all matters connected with trading^ as you can nom 
fursue^ with undivided attention^ the measures you may 
consider best calculated to benefit your adopted 
country t F 

The revenues of Sarawak are distributed amongst 
four different departments, administered by three 
native Datus or Chiefs, and myself: they are derived 
from a fixed rice-tax, the lease of the antimony mines, 
an opium farm, a spirit-farm, a tax on killing pigs, a 
tax on working gold, ground-rents, fisheries, fines, and 
other small items ; and that portion of this revenue, 
with the disbursement of which I was formerly in- 
trusted, amounts to about 5,000/. per annum. 

To raise Sarawak to its present prosperous condition, 
I have expended from my private fortune a sum 
certainly not less than 20,000/. ; and my relations, 
therefore, with the country are twofold, firstly, as its 
ruler, and secondly, as a public creditor. 

Previously to the year 1848, I received from tiie 
revenues a yearly sum for my personal expenses, 
varying from 300/. to 500/. ; from the commencement 
of 1848 to October, 1851, I took nothing; and from 
October, 1851, to the close of 1852, 1 have drawn at 
the rate of 1,000/. per annum. 

This is substantially the state of affitirs at the 
present time: as a public creditor I have not been 
hard, I have never desired to charge interest on the 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.CB. 157 

money I have advanced ; and when the country can 
afford to repay it, I shall have no claim on its revenues, 
and shall be content with such a sum as may be yearly 
apportioned, to maintain the position which I now 
hold. 

Having premised thus much, I shall confine the 
explanation, with which I must still trouble you, to 
the departments of Government, which I once su- 
perintended, in Sarawak, but which, since I accepted 
an appointment in the public service of £ngland, has 
been more efficiently superintended by my relative. 
Captain Brooke.* 

The, charges to be defrayed are similar to those in 
other countries. Payment of interest on the public 
debt — exceptingwhat is due to me — public establishments 
and salaries, charities, improvements, public buildings, 
roads, army.f navy, police, &c. &c. ; and the amoimt, 
I have before mentioned, of 5,000/. per annum, is 
mainly derived from the opium farm and the antimony 
mines. 

A brief detail, therefore, of these sources of 
revenue will enable you to judge whether a monopoly 
exists, in the legal and injurious sense of that word, or 
whether I can justly be said to be engaged in trade 

* A portion of the time by another gentleman. 

t The full complement of the standing army is twenty-four 



158 PBIVATE LETTEBS OF 

whilst holding office under the Goyernmeiit of this 
country. 

Istly. Opium. This branch of the revenue is 
superintended by an officer appointed for the pur* 
pose, and is a fiscal regulation for the retail sale of 
opium. The farm is leased to responsible persons for 
a stated monthly sum, or should such persons not be 
found to undertake the entire management, there are 
one or more farmers who receive opium from the 
Government officer, which they are licensed to retail, 
and which they accoimt for at a fixed price. I must 
add, that the opium farm in Sarawak is identical in 
principle, and nearly so in details, with the same farms 
in Singapore, Malacca, Penang, and Labuan ; that the 
Governors of these settlements have never been accused 
of trading, and that this fiscal arrangement in no 
manner interferes with the wholesale import, export, or 
sale of opium. 

2ndly. The antimony mines. It will be at once 
evident, that a proprietary right to the mineral pro-- 
ductions must exist in every country. The antimony 
ore of Sarawak does not belong to private individuals, 
and has, since its first discovery, been treated as the 
property of the State. 

The merchant, formerly wishing to purchase the 
ore, dealt with the ruler of the country, and it was 
for this ruler that the population were once forced to 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 159 

procure it. They toere driven to labour^* and very 
inadequately remunerated — trade, as I declared in 
1841,t was a " curse instead of a blessing," and led 
only to the oppression of the poorer classes. When I 
took charge of the government of Sarawak, I retained 
the antimony ore as a means of revenue, but I freed 
the people from compulsory labour, and quadrupled 
the price paid for the article. The antimony mines 
have been leased since the year 1 846, J and the only 
right, claimed for the Government of Sarawak, or for 
the lessees, is, that they may be permitted to dispose 
of the ore in the market, where it will fetch the 
highest price. 

Antimony is the produce of other places in Borneo. 
The freedom of trade is guaranteed by treaty, and I 
possess no power to prevent the natives working the 
mines, should they desire to do so. My character 
would be sunk in European estimation by any such 
attempt, and my influence over the native mind de- 
stroyed by it, and there could be no temptation for me ; 
for should the ore of another locality, supersede the ore 

♦ Keppel's Narrative, vol. ii., pp. 204, 205. " The Dyaks were 
compelled, amidst their other wrongs, to labour at the ore, without 
any recompense. Many died in consequence of this compulsory 
labour." This is what some persons are pleased to describe as Free 
Trade! ! 

t Letter to James Gardner, Esq., p. 21. 

X With a brief interval only. 



160 PBIVATE LETTEES OF 

of Sarawak, the loss, in the first place, would fall on 
the lessees, and the revenue now derived from that 
source, which amounts to 2,0002. per annum, would be 
as readily obtained by the imposition of a tax upon 
salt, by an additional tax upon rice, or by many other 
means. Sarawak, from the increase of its population 
and its trade, and from the increased confidence and 
prosperity which reigns, would yield a revenue far 
exceeding what is now collected — ^it is, because I have 
refrained from imposing burdens on the people which 
they would bear without complaint — because I have 
expended a large sum to advance the welfare of the 
country — because my habits, temper^ and edu^ation^ 
render me averse to all matters connected vnth commerce 
— because I have never kept a private account in my life 
— because I have but rarely and cursorily looked at 
public accounts — and because the surplus revenue {when it 
shall accrue) would not belong to me personally y but to 
the State of Sarauxtk-^it is because of these things that 
I am accused of engaging in tradcy whilst holding a 
public appointment in the service of England. You may, 
my dear Sir, now decide whether a monopoly has been 
established,* or whether the indirect administration of 

* The following is an extract from a letter from Messrs. Shaw, 
Whitehead and Co.^ the Agents in Singapore, to Messrs. MelyiUe 
and Co., the lessees of the antimony mines in Sarawak, lith June, 
1847: — " We note your remarks on the subject of raw sago; it might 



SIE JAMES RROOKE, K.C.B. 161 

a public revenue, can with justice be confounded, with 
the personal obligations of trade. 



(No. a) No. 173. 

Henry Drummond, Esq., M.P. 

My dear Sir, 

The fifth charge urged by Mr. Hume rests on 
a complaint made by Mr. Bums, of my having im- 
peded his trading operations in the Bintulu river. 
Mr. Nicol (a partner in the firm of Messrs Hamilton, 
Gray, and Co.), the employer of Mr. Bums, has stated 
that, ^^ 83 the speculation was a mere delusion, he made 
up his mind to have nothing more to do with it," and 
*' he emphatically denied that I ever, to his knowledge, 
evinced the least jealousy of the undertaking, or at- 
tempted to thwart it ; but, on the contrary, that I was 
willing to promote it as figur as lay in my power."* It 
will be necessary, however, for me to dwell briefly on 
some of the allegations made by this unfortunate young 
mail, in order to show the nature of the charge, which 
rests on his authority, as opposed to that of his em- 

be against the principlea of free trade established in Sarawak to make a 
monopoly of the article.** 

* Borneo. — ^Further papers respecting Mr. Bums^ presented to 
the House of Commons, 25th June^ 1852, pp. 1, 2. 



1 62 PBIVATB LErrrERS OF 

ployer, Mr. Nicol. He stated, in a letter addressed to 
Lord Palmerston, dated June 28, 1851, that during 
my absence in England, a letter had been sent from 
Sarawak, menacing the chiefs of Bintulu, should they 
permit a white man to reside in their country.* This 
letter Mr. Bums stated that he heard read early in the 
year 1848, although no complaint was made relative to 
it until June 1851, whether to his employer or to Her 
Majesty's Government So important was this letter 
considered, that a sum of eighty pounds was offered for 
a copy^\ by Mr. Motley, the superintendent of the 
Eastern Archipelago Company, and Mr. Bums subse- 
quently offered money for it, when in Brune for the 
last time. Whether they succeeded in obtaining the 
information which they sought must continue a matter 
of doubt i but the truth of Mr. Bums' statement may 
now be judged, by the copy of the letter which has been 
forwarded from Sarawak.^ 

It is further asserted that a second letter was sent 
by me to Bintulu, in the " Phlegethon " steamer, which 
Mr. Bums heard ready and which ordered the chiefs to 
tiira him out of the country. In reply, it is enough to 



♦ F. 0. Borneo. — Correspondence respecting Mr. Bums, presented 
to the House of Commons, 23rd March, 1852, pp. I, 2. 

t Idem, p. 19. 

X F. 0. Parliamentary Papers moved for, but not yet presented 
to the House of Commons. 1853. 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 163 

say, that in 1848 when the events occurred they were not 
mentioned; in 1849 they were stated to be ^^ rumours** 
which Mr. Bums " was led to believe" and in 1851 are 
discovered to be facts, all along well known to this same 
person I* 

I am obliged, however reluctantly, to notice another 
subject coDnected with a statement referred by Mr. 
Hume to the Earl of Derby, on the 28th February, 
1852.t 

On July the 30th, 1851, Mr. Motley joined Mr. 
Bums aboard the ** Dolphin " schooner off Labuan ; it 
is probable that on the following day the " Dolphin " 
sailed for Brune, a distance of fifty miles, the last fif- 
teen being a difficult river navigation. On the 4th of 
August, Mr. Bams and Mr. Motley were in the palace 
of His Highness Omar Ali, and on the 5th, at anchor 
below Palo Chermin, having left the city, whence they 
addressed to Mr. Hume a statement of the complaints 
alleged to have been made by the sultan against my pro- 
ceedings,^ in the presence and hearing of Pangeran 
Mumein, prime minister of Brune, Pangeran Ma- 
kota, &c. 

The dates will prove that trade was not the object of 
the visit. Mr. Bums proceeded on a trading voyage 
to Malludu Bay, where his vessel was captured, and he 

* Borneo. — Correspondence respecting Mr. Bums, 23rd March 
1852, p. 5. 
t Idem, p. 19. 






164 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

himself was murdered by Lanun pirates ; and on the 
recovery of the vessel, amongst the papers aboard, wene 
the two following extracts from a journal kept by the 
deceased : — 

"July 30, 1851. Mr. Motley came (from) Coal 
Point to-day, and wishing to go to Brune with me, said 
he offered the sultan two hundred dollars for the Bin* 
tulu letter." 

** August. 4th. — Got the Sultan and Mumein, Sfc.j to 
promise to write to the Queen about Sir James Brooke 
and Sarawak in two or three days^* 

Having become acquainted with these facts, I ad- 
dressed the sultan and rajahs of Brune on the subject, 
omitting the names of the parties concerned, and their 
reply demonstrates, that they had been instigated to 
make complaints, and that the statements forwarded to 
Mr, Hume werefabricated to injure me. 

I am content to draw a decent veil over these in- 
trigues, and to expose them only so far as it is impera- 
tively necessary in my own defence. 

The sixth and last charge urged by Mr. Hume, rests 
on the unsupported allegations of the directors of the 
Eastern Archipelago Company, and is, that " I made a 
most unscrupulous use of my high position in the ser- 
vice of Her Majesty, to obstruct by every means in my 
power a company chartered by the Crown, which I was 

♦ Borneo.— Correspondence respecting Mr. Bums, 23rd March, 
1852, p. 19. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.O.B. ] 65 

cwrdered by Her Majesty and the Government, to assist 
and protect."* 

I may first state, in reply, that every step which I 
have taken during the last five years, has been regu- 
larly reported to the Government, without a single 
instance of its disapproval ; and that the above accu- 
sation was advanced, when with the writ of the Attor^ 
ney-Generaly and with the knowledge both of Earl Grey 
and Sir John Pakinffton, I had taken proceedings to 
vacate the charter of the Eastern Archipelago Company 
on the ground of fraud /f 

The following summary of the transactions of this 
Company, since its formation, are at once curious and 
interesting, and merit attention, as relating to a subject 
of national importance. 

The Eastern Archipelago Company was incorporated 
by the Government of Lord John Russell in 1847, J 
for the avowed purpose of rapidly developing the re- 
saurces of Labuan^ and of taking advantage of the rehr 
iions which existed between myself and the Government 
of Sarawak^ for the establishment of new branches of 
British commerce with the island of Borneo, The set- 
tlement of Labuan was so materially injured by the 

» F. 0. — Parliamentary Papers moved for, but not yet presented 
to the House of Commons. 1853. 

t Appendix to the Fourth Annual Report of the Eastern Archi- 
pelago Company, p.p. 20 — 42. 

X Eastern Archipelago Company, ordered by the House of Com- 
mons to be printed, 3rd April, 1848. No. 227, p.p. 6—9. 



1 



166 PRIVATE LBTTTEBS OF 

dilatory operations of the Company, that I considered 
it my duty on various occasions, to report the circum- 
stance to Government; and so desirous was I, of 
advancing the objects contemplated by the charter, 
that in a despatch addressed to Earl Grey, bearing 
date the 9th January, 1850,* I stated, " that I at- 
tached so high an importance to the efficient working 
of the coal-mines, that / urgently recommended thatj if 
feasibky Her Majestifi Government should afford every 
encouragement to the Company^ in order to enable it to 
fulfil its agreements^ 

In November, 1851, being then in England, I com- 
plained officially, of the misconduct of some of the 
directors, and of the intrigues carried on by the Com- 
pany's agents and servants in Borneo."!* 

At the commencement of 1852, 1 resolved to make 
myself fiiUy acquainted with the affiiirs of a Company 
which had caused, and was likely to cause, such serious 
detriment to the public interest in general, and to the 
settlement of Labuan in particular : and on referring 
to the deed of settlement, the facts I shall now narrate 
ciame to light. 

For the attainment of the objects above mentioned, 
namely, the rapid development of Labuan, and the 
establishment of new branches of British commerce in 

♦ Colonial Office, ordered by the Houfle of CoxmnoDs to be 
printed, 17th May, 1852.^ No. 357, p. 86. 
t Idem, p.p. 113—131, 132. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, KCK 167 

Borneo; Her Majesty's Government intrusted the 
formation of this Company to Mr. Henry Wise, 
who, besides the Royal Charter, had obtained a 
lease of coal in Labuan, and a grant for working 
coal on the mainland of Borneo. It became neces- 
sary that Mr. Wise should find persons to assist 
turn in forwarding this important imdertaking, and 
he fixed upon five gentlemen, whose names I am 
reluctantly obliged to mention in connection with the 
transaction. 

A legal instrument was drawn out and signed on 
the one part, by Mr. McGregor, Mr. Hugh Hamilton 
Lindsay, Sir John Pirie, Mr. Alexander Naime, and 
Captain Drinkwater Bethune ; and on the other part 
by Mr. Henry Wise. This instrument was executed 
previously to the formation of the Company, and was 
subsequently incorporated into the deed of settlement, 
and contained the following clauses : — 

ist. " Mr. Wise to be one of the managing directors 
of the Company, irremoveable, except by a general 
meeting of the shareholders, for misconduct or inca- 
pacity."* 

2ndly. V Mr. Wise to be paid 6,000Z. within four 
calendar months after the complete formation of the 
Company." 

3rdly. " And also, the annual sum of 3,000Z. every 

* Deed of Settlement to be seen at the Enrolment Office in 
Chancery Lane. 



1 68 PBIYATE LETTTEBS OF 

year, during the first ten years of the existence of the 
said Company." 

4thly. " Mr. Wise to receive one hundred shares 
(1.6., shares of 100/. each), in the Company, to be paid 
up out of the capital of the Company." 

5thly. " Mr. Wise, also, to receive 21 lOs. per cent 
on the amount of all dividends, and every bonus, to be 
made by the Company, provided that no such per 
centage should be payable in any case, or at any time, 
where, and when, the amount of such dividends and 
bonus should be less than 7Z. 10s. per cent, of the 
Company's capital. 

**The above monies, shares, and per centage to 
be considered as inpayment of the purchase of 
Mr, Wises interests in the Charter^ and for the grant 
to Mr. Wise for the said term of twenty years (out 
of thirty years' lease), as before mentioned, of his 
interest in the said agreement, with the Crown, and 
the said right of working coals on the mainland of 
Borneo." 

And further, " as a remuneration for his services 
and the premises already rendered, as before stated, 
Mr. Wise to receive (over and above the before-men- 
tioned monies, shares, and per centage) as his salary, 
as one of the managing directors, 800Z. per annum, and 
2/. 10«. per cent, on the amount of all dividends, and 
of every bonus to be made by the Company, such per 
centage not exceeding in any one year, 1000/. ; so that 



SIB JAMES BBOOEE, KCB. 169 

Mr. Wise's salary in the whole, over and above the 
first-mentioned monies, shares, and per centage, shall 
not in any one year exceed 1,800/.^' 

I cannot suppose that these five gentlemen, accus- 
tomed to business, and aiming at the direction of a 
public Company, could have been so negligent as to 
affix their signatures, without being fully aware of the 
purport of the instrument, conveying to Mr. Wise such 
enormous sums ; and I must leave it to persons better 
acquainted than myself with commercial transactions, 
to understand the motives which actuated them, in thus 
raising so serious an impediment, to the success of a 
national undertaking. 

The fate of the Company was decided by this bond, 
entered into, before its commencement : and the gentle- 
men who had signed it, having become Directors, 
obtained no support from the public, and possessed no 
means to carry out the important objects for the accom- 
plishment of which the Charter had been granted.* 

By a cursory inspection of the Registered List of 
Shareholders in August 1851, it will be seen that the 
undertaking had little reality, excepting upon paper. 
Out of the 2,000 shares into which the Company's 

♦ Captain Liiard of H.M.S. " Serpent," in a report dated March 

1852, the Beverend Francis McDougaU, in the middle of the same 

year, and the " Singapore Free Press," so late as November last, 

confirm the inefficient working of the Company's mines in Labuan. 

VOL. III. I 



170 PBIVATB LETTERS OF 

capital was to be distributed, Mr. Wise, the irremove- 
able Director, held 728 shares ; Mr. Lindsay, the 
Chairman (with two relatives), possessed 713 shares; 
and the remaining Directors 274 shares : thus making 
a total of 1715 shares in the hands of the direction.* 

I thus, for the first time, became aware of the true 
cause, which had defeated an object I had been striving 
to advance, and I had long before perceived and repre- 
sented the danger of coal from other places superseding 
the coal of Labuan. and thus sealing the ruin of a 
settlement which deserved a better fate. I was resolved 
to remedy this state of affairs ; I reported the circum- 
stances officially ; and with the knowledge of ministers, 
I took proceedings in the Queen's Bench to vacate the 
letters patent. 

* The accounts relative to the Company's capital are per- 
plexing: — 

The list of Shareholders, as per Register of the 9th of 
August, 1851, shows the amount paid up on the 
shares at ------ £33,835 

The abstract, of general account of the Company, 
obtained from the Directors by Mr. Macgregor, 
June 28th, 1852, gives the paid capital as - 29,825 



Paid up capital in 1852, minus £4,010 
thus demonstrating that the amount paid up on the shares was 
£4,010 less in 1852 than what it had been in 1851 — and as there 
is an annual decrease in the sum already paid up, we may in time, 
arrive at the true amount paid by the shareholders — t. e. the Di- 
rectors. 



SIB JAMES BBOOKE, K.aR 171 

One of the conditions of the Charter was, that the 
Company should not commence business until three of 
its Directors had given a certificate to the Board of 
Trade,* which certificate they were to endorse on the 
Royal Charter, that 100,000/. had been subscribed for, 
and 50,000/. at the least paid up of the capital of the 
Company. Whether this condition had been complied 
with was the main issue in the Queen's Bench, and in 
June last, the verdict given by the special jury was, to 
the effect that five of the Directors had given a fake 
certificate to the Board of Trade, knowing it to be 
fabeA 

This verdict placed the merits of the question beyond 
dispute, and beyond appeal, and I must again affix the 
names of the Directors to this false certificate, lest the 
gentlemen, who have since joined the Company, and 
are not implicated by the verdict, should be confounded 
with their associates. 

The certificate, pronounced to be false, and endorsed 
on the Charter, runs as follows : — " We, the Directors 
of the Eastern Archipelago Company, hereby certify, 
hat the sum of 100,000/., being half of the capital of 
the said corporation^ hath been subscribed for, and that 

♦ Board of Trade^ ordered by the Hou9e of Commona to be 
printed, 3rd April, 1848. No. 227. 

t That the 50,000/. had not been paid up, as they weU knew, 
when they gave the certificate that it had been paid. 

I 2 



1 72 PBIVATE LETTERS OF 

the sum of 50,000Z. hath been paid up. Dated this 25rt 
day of July, 1848. 

(Signed) " J. McGregor, Chairman, 

Chas. D. Bethune, Dep. Chairman, 

H. H. Lindsay, 

Alex. Nairne. 

Henry Wise." 
The Directors set up in their defence, against the 
verdict of the jury, that they had received permission 
from the Board of Trade, to endorse this false and 
illegal certificate on the Royal Charter I It is replied, 
that the nature of the transaction cannot be altered — 
that the crime of falsehood must rest upon those wlu) 
commit it, that the guilt of the Directors, has been 
proved by the verdict of a jury ; and that the permis- 
sion, pleaded as an excuse, could neither be given nor 
accepted. In the second place it is shown, that the 
Board of Trade was deceived by the Directors, who 
requested permission to substitute property for capital, 
when in truth the Company had no such property a^ they 
represented it to have. This is clearly demonstrated by 
Sir Stafford Northcote's letter* addressed to Captain 
Bethune on this subject ; one or other of the Directors 
called upon me (writes Sir Stafford Northcote) and 
inquired, whether it would be correct to include the 
value of the Company s property in the return — this 
* The whole of this letter ought to have been printed. 



SlU JAMES BBOOEE, K.C.B. 173 

permission was granted, — but " whether we were right 
or wrong" (continues Sir Stafford) " in allowing the 
property to be reckoned as part of the paid-up capital^ 
we certainly did it vnth our eyes open,^^* 

The representation, however, that the Company was 
possessed of property was a false representation^ as tlie 
certificate founded upon it was a false certificate ; for 
having run into debt to the extent of 46,000/., and in 
return having acquired a nominal property^ asserted to 
he worth that sum, this nominal property tohich had not 
been paid for^ was substituted for the paid-up capital 
required by the Charter; and the Board of Trade^ 
having been deluded by this pretext^ the false certificate 
was given that 50,000/. at the least had been paid up. 

Sir Frederick Thesiger declared in the Queen's 
Bench, that " the 46,000/. only represented^ in fact^ a 
debt of the Company to that amount ; they had not paid 
one farthing for the 46,000/. u}orth of value,'* f And 
Lord Campbell from the Bench, in adverting to the 
proper exercise of the Attomey-Generars discretion, 
stated that " it was possible that in this case evidence 
was laid before the Attorney-General, of the gross 
fraud respecting the false certificate ; * that the capital of 
50,000/. had been paid up,' which is suggested in the 
scire faciaSy and which was proved to tlie satisfaction of 
the Jury, whereby there was a failure of consideration, 

* Fourth Report of the Eastern Archipelago Company, p.p. 24, 25. 
t Short-hand Writer's report of the trial. Times, 28th June, and 
iBt July, 1852. 



174 PBIVATB LETTEBS OF 

and the objects of granting the Charter to work mines 
abroad^ with capital to be subscribed at home, will have 
been entirely defeated."* 

* Lord Campbell, in his judgment, further stated that "the 
'* scire facias suggested gross misconduct on the part of the Dh-ectors, 
that they knowingly signed a false certificate," and *^that the alleged 
misconduct must be considered as established by the Terdict of the 
iDry."-^hort'hand Writer^s Notes. 

Other serious charges of misconduct have been proved. Lord 
Campbell, in summing up for the Jury, asked, ''How is that 
(capital) made up ? Not of the result of calls, but of some inv- 
aginary value put upon the coal-mines in Labuan, and the coal-mineB 
in Borneo." — Short-hand Writer's Notes, 

Earl Grey considered the rental of 100/. per annum, as repre- 
senting the proper value of the property leased to the Company 
in Lftbuan previously to the application of the capital stipulated 
by the Charter ; the rental of the coal-mines on the mainland was 
about 220/. per annum, payable only when they shoiild bd worked, 
and with the rental of 320/. per annum as the test of value an* 
tecedent to the development of the mines, (which at twenty years' 
purchase would give 6600/.,) the Directors of the Company, without 
any warrant whatever, stated this property to be worth 46,000/., that 
beitg the exact sum wanted to meet the condition t» the Charter, and 
therefore likewise the exact sum owing to Mr, Wise for the transfer of the 
property. Thus a year afterwards, in the accoimt rendered to the 
Board of Trade, appeared a credit in favour of the Company for 
51,455/. (including 46,000^., the imaginary value of the property) to 
satisfy the stipulation of the Charter ; and on the other side a 
debit against the Company for 46,000/. to satisfy Mr. Wise ! 

Here is the account as it stands: — 
Balance Sheet of the Eastern Archipelago Company for the Tear ending 

the 30*A day of Jvne, 1849. 
Dr. 

Ledger folio. £. s, d. 

4 Royal charter, Crown 
lease, and coal 
grant . . . 46,000 "0 
6 Founder's original 

grant . • . 4,200 
With other items of 

expense . . 3,829 1 6 

£54,029 1 6 £54,029 1 6 

Examined and approved. 

(Signed) J. H. Gladstone, Auditor. 

J. MacGreqob, Chairman. 

[Was 





Cr. 


Ledger folio. 


£. s,d. 


1 Capital . . 


. 51,455 


46 Henry Wise . 


574 1 6 


56 Loan . • • 


. 2,000 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K,C.R 175 

Thus, these ^' five Directors, having substituted ml 
property^ in the place of no capital^ endorsed a false 
certificate^ knowing it to be false, upon the Royal 
Charter, and the legal* question at present pending, 
solely relates to whether the revocation of the Charter 

Was the Board of Trade cognizant of this fashion of substituting 
property for capital i Until it be avowed, I do not believe it ! 



* This refers to the appeal in the Exchequer Chamber 
against the judgment of the Queen's Bench, which has, as be- 
fore stated, been decided in favour of Sir James Brooke, by 
the majority of seven of the judges to one. In his judgment, 
Mr. Baa-on Martin says, "The real question in the present 
case is, does there, or not, appear on the record, that there 
was such conduct on the part of the Directors (being the 
managing body of the Company), as amounted to a misuser 
or abuse of the charter ? . . . Now the record shows, not 
merely that this sum was not paid, when the Company began 
to trade, but that the Directors knowingly delivered to the 
Board of Trade a false certificate, that it had been so paid. 
In my opinion, such conduct amounted to a gross abuse and 
misuser of the privileges conferred by the charter. And that 
quite independent of the form of language in which it is 
nramed, the corporation so conducting itself by its governing 
body, forfeited the franchise conferred upon them. It was a 
proceeding in direct defiance of the provisions of the charter, 
accompanied by a wilful false statement to the President of 
the Board of Trade, in regard to a matter which the charter 
required to be stated with truth." And C. J. Jervis in his 
judgment says, " I agree that the falsehood vitiates the cer- 
tificate, but in my opinion, it has another and more serious 
effect upon the charter itself. It is a falsehood stated to the 
Crown by the Directors in their corporate capacity, professing 
to act under their charter, and is an abuse of their fran- 
chise. . . . It is not provided for expressly by the 
charter, but it is imphed, that when the Directors certify, 
they will certify truly, and, in my opinion, if availing them- 
selves of their corporate capacity, and professing to act under 
their charter, they certify faJsely to the Crown, through its 
officers, they abuse the franchise, by which they are created, 
and are liable to a scire facias to repeal their patent upon that 
ground." — Short-hand Writer*s Notes, Thus nothing that Sir 

[James 



176 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

• 

should proceed from the Crown, under the sign 
manual, or from the subject, by scire facias* 

You will, I am sure, absolve me from any desire to 
injure these unfortunate gentlemen, who have placed 
themselves in a position so derogatory and so painful; 
but after a prolonged silence, when an accusation is 
advanced against me, upon their authority^ I am 
bound to explain the drcumstances which preceded 
and which gave rise to it. 



(No. 4.) No. 174. 

Henry Drummond, Esq., M.P. 
My dear Sir, 

I APPROACH the conclusion of a weary task, by 
noticing briefly that portion of Mr. Hume's pamphlet 

James Brooke has said or written of this Company (which 
now appears to have done, no act as a corporation, save 
through its Directors^ to sign a false certificate) but what 
is borne out by the judgments from the Bench. And the 
argument of counsel on the demurrer before Vice-Chancellor 
Turner is confirmed that the Company never had a legal cor^ 
porate existence at aU. In law a fiJse certificate was no certi- 
ficate—and without a certificate there coidd be no corporation. 
The 50,000Z. paid up in mone^, and the true certificate to that 
effect, were of the essence of its existence — ^a striking proof of 
how right Sir James Brooke has been in all his dealings with 
this pseudo-Company from first to last. — Editor's Note, 



♦ The total expenditure of the Company up to the 
30th June, 1351, is alleged in the Thud Annual Report, 
p. 7, to amount to ----- - £10,819 

Receipts ------- 3,786 

Loss - - - - 7,033 

Ezclusive of the expenses in England, comprismg interest upon 

[the 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 177 

which he supposes will ** convict me out of my ovm 
movth^'* but which, m fact, is attempted by resorting to 
a vulgar artifice to pervert the meaning of a narrative 
suflSciently clear to any candid reader ; it consists in 
extracting particular passages from a desultory and 
broken diary, which being torn from their contexts, and 
placed in unwarranted juxtaposition, without reference 
to dates, or to the change of circumstances, by altering 
the sense, by suppressing words, and by drawing false 
inferences, are made to appear of a condemnatory 
character. 

It is an amusing supposition that I should have 
published my guilt to the world, and that during a 
series of years my confessions should have escaped the 
attention of the best critics, to be discovered by Mr. 
Hume when he was seeking some plea for his. 
threatened attack in Parliament. " Books do not ruin 
characters,"* and if Mr. Hume desires to effect such a 
purpose by such means, he will be bound to accept the 
entire testimony which my written works will aflford, 
and not by partial quotations to make the worse, 
assume the semblance of the better, cause. 

the debt due to Mr. Wise, of 46,000/., his salary of 800/. per 
anaum, &c., &c. 

The scale of the operations may be judged from the fact that 
the Company's superintendent in 1849 was obliged to borrow 130/. 
from the Labuan Treasury to prevent the stoppage of the works.— 
Par. P. Admiralty, printed 24th June, 1851, No. 428, p. 5. 

♦ Colonial Oface.— Ordered by the House of Commons, 17th 
May, 1852. No. 357, p. 121. 

i3 



^ 



178 PBIVATE LETCEKS OF 

I shall content myself with a reference to the 
Parliamentary Papers,* in order to prove the nnfeir- 
ness of Mr. Hume's relation, of what really occurred ; 
and a perusal of the diaries, will at once confute the 
laboured perversion of their meaning, and the di»n- 
genuous distortion or suppression of their words. 

I offer a brief, and unavoidably an imperfect sum- 
mary of the narration contained in the works of Cap* 
tain Keppel, and of Captain Mundy, where facts will 
be found interspersed with opinions, and where the 
hopes, fears, or conjectures of the hour were noted 
down, amid the occasional record of passing events. 

I visited Sarawak in my yachtf I was unconnected 
with commerce. I met a native prince involved in 
difBculty. I assisted him. He offered me the country. 
I at first declined, as it would have been ungenerous 
to accept.^ I was not eager to embrace the offer. 
The war was terminated successfully. Muda Hassim 
made out an agreement,§ purporting that I was to 
reside at Sarawak, "to seek for profit." || I objected, 
and was assured that this was not the agreement under^ 
stood between us. Trusting to the good faith of the 



♦ F. 0. — Parliamentary Papers moyed for, but not yet presented 
to the House of Commons, 1853. 

t Keppel, vol. i. pp. 7, 73, 142, 146, 177, 208, 209. 

X Idem, p. 210. § Idem, p. 213. 

11 By carefully suppressing the context, which mentions my 
objection, and the assurance given, Mr. Hume makes this appear to 
be the oniy agreement. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 1 79 

Rajali, I purchased a vessel. I loaded her with cargo.* 
I made this cargo over to him. I was detained month 
after month, at a ruinous expense. I requested repay- 
ment, or the fulfilment of his promise. I remonstrated. 
The Rajah allowed the justice of what I urged, and 
again pledged himself to give me the country,^ 
Delays followed — poison was attempted. I resolved 
to bring matters to an issue.J I loaded the guns, 
obtained an interview, and with many protestations of 
kindness towards the Rajah, § I threatened Makota with 
attack, as neither he, (the Rajah) nor myself were safe, 
whilst Makota continued practising those arts. The 
Rajah then fulfilled his repeated promise. The Sultan's 
signature was freely obtained to the same grant of 
Sarawak ; and I declined the government of all the 
rivers along a coast line of three hundred miles. || 

Early in the year 1845 arrangements had been 
made1[ to obtain a fixed yearly revenue from the pos- 
sessions of Brune, which contributed nothing, or next 
to nothing ;** and at the same time to commute the 
tribute paid by Sarawak for a stated sumft 

(These arrangements were not carried into effect, 
in consequence of the treacherous murder of the 
princes who held the reins of government, and sub- 

♦ Keppel, vol i. p. 214. t Idem, p. 243. 

X Mundy, vol. i. p. 270. § Keppel, vol. i. p. 251. - 

11 Miindy, vol. ii. p. 326. ^ Keppel, vol. ii. p. 158. 

** Mundy, vol. i. p. 189. ft Idem, vol. ii. p. 26—39. 



180 PBIVATE LETTEB8 OF 

sequently, when order was restored, the sultan, throng 
his ministers, ratified his violated engagements with 
England, and confirmed the cession of Sarawak ob the 
terms previously agreed upon; the only difference 
being, that the sum to be paid was devoted to the 
support of the Rajah Muda Hassim's unhappy family, 
instead of being ^ven, as it would have been, to that 
prince himself had he lived.)* 

This relation may be verified by a reference to the 
published works ; but in order to prove the studied 
manner in which Mr. Hume suppresses the relative 
positions of the princes and parties in the city of 
Borneo, and the circumstances connected with the 
death of the one, and the defeat of the other, the con- 
tinuation of this summary will best explain. 

I described the Government of firune to be in the 
last stage of decay. There was no sovereign, but two 
claimants to the throne ; namely, Omar Ali, called 
the Sultan (which is not the sovereign title), and 
Muda Hassim, called the Rajah. The claim of the 
rajah was as valid as that of the sultanj — he pos- 
sessed the de facto power, (which the sultan could 
not exercise) before he quitted Brune for Sarawak-t 

* I mark by a parenthesiB the circumstances not mentioned in . 
the journals. 

t Letter to James Gardner, Esq. p. 30. 
X Mundy, yoI. ii., p. 39. 



SIR JAM£S BBOOKE, K-CB. 181 

The sultan was imbecile and wicked, " with the head 
of an idiot and the heart of a pirate."* The rajah 
was an amiable prince, his brother Budrudeen, an able 
and noble gentleman — they supported the cause of 
good government, desired to suppress piracy, and to 
advance commerce, they sought a friendly alliance 
with the English, and had always in the capital been 
the protectors of European merchants. With the aid 
of Sir Edward Belcher, these princes returned to their 
native city of Brune, and were reinstated in the 
authority they before possessed, because the people in 
yeneral^ sided with Muda Hassim, and were decidedly 
opposed to the rule of Pangeran Usop^ who had 
frightened the Sultan into a show of hostility.^ 

On the other hand, exercising an evil influence over 
the weak Sultan, was Pangeran Usop (an illegitimate 
son of the former sovereign or lang di per Tuan), and 
connected with him, a piratical party, which not long 
before had committed an outrage upon British 
subjects X This piratical party was violent, difficult to 

* Mundy, vol. I, pp. 356 — 357. 

t Idem, vol. i. pp. 380, 381. 

X Here is a fair example of Mr. Hume's process of arriving at 
a conclusion to suit Ms purpose. A reference to Captain Keppel's 
wort, vol, i., pp. 237, 238, will show that in January, 1841, the 
English ship ** Sultana" had been burned at sea, and her crew plun- 
dered, and imprisoned by the Sultan and his Minister Pangeran 
Usop. Mr. Hume accuses me of having deliberately contemplated 



1 



1 82 PBIVATB LETTEBS OP 

restraiD, opposed to commerce or good onderstandii^,* 
and an obstacle alike to progress and to improvenjent. 
In 1843 the dissensions in the capital were serious, 
and the reason was, that Pangeran Usop aimed at 

the Sultan's dethronement, and quotes as follows from my diary, 
in support of his assertion. Vide Mundy, vol. 1, pp. 274, 275, 
276. 

Mr. Hvm^s version. 

"Feb. 2, 1842. — I some months ago suggested to N the 

advantage of raising Muda Hassim to the throne, or placing him as 
Bandharra (first minister) in a position to govern the Sultan." 
Sir Jamea Brookes Diary. 
"Feb. 2nd, 1842. — It appears that the Bengal Government has 
determined to resent the conduct of the Sultan of Borneo and his 
profligate Pangerans, to the crew of the Sultana." 

* * * * • 

"The increasing interest in China, owing to the war in that 
quarter, has induced the Government to act ; and foreseeing the 
possibility of such an event, I some months ago suggested to N— 
the advantage of raising Muda Hassim to the throne, or placing him^ 
as Bandharra, in a position to govern the sultan : and it now seems 

that Mr. is rather inclined to adopt this suggestion, he having 

inquired how far such a step would accord with my views.'* 

The annals of controversy cannot furnish a more deliberate and 
mischievous suppression. It is not done by Mr. Himie ; but can 
he read its exposure without a feeling of shame ? Placed in juxta- 
position to the above is a passage from the Diary of 1845. 

It is true that I recorded my opinion that the Sultan was unfit 
to reign, and that it would be advisable to place Muda Hassim on 
the throne. Muda Hassim's return to Borneo had no connection with 
this opinion, which was opposed to his own views. Mundy, vol. ii., 
p. 75. Mr. Hume suppresses my reasons for the opinion I en- 
tertained. 

* Mimdy, vol. ii., pp. 11, 12, 14, 15» 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.aR 183 

acquiring power, and ultimately gaining possession of 
the throne* Such was the state of parties when Muda 
Hassim regained his influence in Brune. There are 
in my Diary many conflicting statements, made at 
diflTerent times, in regard to the relative positions and 
claims of the sultan and the rajah, but the fact really 
was, as may be gathered from a fair comparison of 
these conflicting passages,! that the Rajah ac- 
knowledged the Sultan, and forbore urging his claim 
to his prejudice, whilst the Sultan, with the single inter- 
val of his uncle's absence in Sarawak, acknowledged 
him as the prime minister, which he was, by hereditary 
descent.^ 

The Rajah Muda Hassim, on his again assuming 
the reins of government, § offered, in conjunction with 
the Sultan, to enter into relations to advance trade 
and to suppress piracy. 

The English Government accepted these offers, and 
dispatched a mission to Brune to encourage the good 
resolves of the princes. 

The sultan and the rajah conveyed renewed assur- 
ances of friendship to the Queen of England, and 

* Mundy, vol. i., p. 355 ; vol 2, p. 20. f Idem, vol. ii., p. 75. 

% The difference between an hereditary prime minister of the 
royal fiamily in an Asiatic State and a prime minister in an European 
one should be remembered. 

§ Mundy, vol. i., p. 187. 



184 PRIVATE LETTEES OF 

" expressed their hope that through her assistance, they 
should be enabled to settle the government of BomeOy to 
suppress piracy and to foster trade ;"* and on the faith 
of the encouragement they had received, they resorted 
to measures for attaining the objects arranged be- 
tween the two govemments.t 

It further appears, that in February, 1845,J I 
had succeeded in reconciling the rival parties — ^that 
Muda Hassim was in power, and Pangeran Usop 
friendly and quiet — that in May, affairs had retro- 
graded — that doubts had arisen in the minds of the 
well-disposed, from the continued absence of our 
support — and that Pangeran Usop disbelieved our 
power, and disturbed the public opinion.§ In August 
of the same year. Sir Thomas Cochrane visited Brune, 
to improve the good understanding which existed, and 
in accordance with the intentions of his own govern- 
ment, as well as with the view of supporting the autho- 
rity of Muda Hassim, demanded reparation for the 
detention and confinement of two British subjects^ sub^ 
sequently to the friendly engagements entered into with 
England. || The act, however, was Pangeran Usop's j 
he was too powerful for the sultan and rajah to con- 



* Mundy, vol. ii., p. 15. t Keppel, vol. ii., p. 165. 

X Mundy, vol. ii., p. 10. § Mundy, vol. ii., pp. 32, 33, 

II Keppel, vol. ii., pp. 170, 171. 



Snt JAMES BBOOKS, E.C.B. 185 

trol, and the measure, with their consent, was left in 
the hands of the naval commander-in-chief. ^* I was 
in hopes that when he saw the overwhelming force 
opposed to him, his pride would yield to necessity."* 
Usop was punished ; the government of Brune sup- 
ported in its object of suppressing evil, and the two 
British subjects, confined and enslaved, were liberated. 
I advised reconciliation; the Rajah Muda Hassim 
made every effort to bring Pangeran Usop over to the 
side of order.f He was offered pardon, which he. re- 
fused to accept.! He attacked the city of Brune, 
was defeated, and fled to Kimanis, where, after my 
departure, in obedience to a written mandate, signed 
by the sultan and the rajah, he was put to death 
(without indignity and without bloodshedding, accord- 
ing to the prescribed form of executing members of 
the royal family).§ 

The Rajah Muda Hassim and the Pangeran Bud- 
rudeen became the de facto ruLers of Brun4^ which the 
sultan could never be, on account of the imbecility of 
his mind ; and these princes, who had been encouraged 
by the British Government in a worthy course of policy, 



♦ Keppel, p. 171. t Iclem, vol. L, p. 180. 

X Mundy, vol. ii, pp. 37 — 74. 

§ This mandate was, and probably stiU remains, in the possession 
of the Orang Eaya of KUnanis. I have marked in a parenthesis 
some particulars not mentioned in my Diary. 



186 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

were fully aware of the danger to which they were 
exposed, should they not be supported by their ally.* 
So immineiit was this danger, that they urged upon 
the English ministers their claim to protection, or 
otherwise demanded a release from their engagement8.t 
I pleaded the same cause, and pointed out the peril. 
The Pangeran Budrudeen applied to the naval com- 
mander-in-chief for aid, and in my Diary of 21st May, 
184.3, will be found the following sad entry : *' Bu- 
drudeen says he knows not the day when his own life 
and the rajaKs may not be sacrificed. Delay is our 

The tragedy, which had cast its shadow before 
it, was consummated ; a conspiracy was formed with 
the knowledge of the sultan ; in the dead of the night 
their houses were fired, and these amiable princes, the 
friends of the English Government, who trusted to its 
support in taking measures for the suppression of 
piracy — these princes were treacherously assaulted 
and foully murdered. 

There are crimes at which humanity revolts ; the 
treacherous and indiscriminate assassination of our 
nearest relatives is one of these crimes. The wild 
and untutored savages of Borneo expressed their in- 

♦ Mundy, vol. ii., p. 14. 

t Foreign Office Correspondence, 1845. 

X Mundy, vol. ii., p. 33. . .^ 



SIB JAMES BBOOKE, K.aB 187 

dignant abhorrence, and it was left for the liberal and 
civilized gentleman to declare that it was an act which 
the sultan was entitled to commit withoiU rendering him 
responsible to his own subjects* There are crimes 
hateful to God, and which should ever be hateful to 
man, and I have never hesitated to avow, that had the 
necessity arisen, I would have led the thousands of 
Borneo, who felt as I felt myself, to punish the perpe- 
trators of this bloody tragedy, and to save the remnant 
of the royal family from the fiiry of their treacherous 
relative and sovereign. The necessity did not arise. 
Sir Thomas Cochrane proceeded to the entrance of 
the Brune river, and " seint an amicable message inti- 
mating his intention of visiting the sultan ; the simple 
inquiry to be made wasy whether the sultan adhered to 
his former engagements, to which Muda Hassim had 
been a party r\ After three days detention^ the answer 
was an unmeaning letter , bearing a forgery on its face, 
with an insolent verbal message, conveyed in a manner, 
which all m/en, acquainted with native usage, would 
consider a gross insult. The admiral proceeded up the 
river as he had intimated, it vxls open to the sultan, 
to receive his Excellency, if he thought ft, but instead 



♦ Mr. Hume's letter to the Earl of Mahneebury, p. 10. 
t Mundy, vol. u., pp. 324, 325. 



1 88 PRIVATE liETTERS OF 

of doing sOy the English flag was fired upon, directly it 
came within reach of the Bruni guns^ 

Here the information contained in my Diary con- 
cludeSy and in offering this entire testimony to Mr. 
Hume for his consideration, I caimot better conclude 
than by a brief quotation from it. " Now I have 
brought up my Journal to the close of the year 1 844 ; 
and written as it has been at various intervals, and 
amidst manifold discomforts, it will probably be very 
disconnected and badly arranged."* 

Mr. Hume has asserted, that there is a law against 
a subject of England becoming the ruler of a foreign 
country. I know no such law, and supposing such a 
one could be discovered, and could be enforced, of 
what practical use would it be ? Would such a law 
preclude a British subject becoming the minister or the 
adviser of a native chief? And supposing Mr. Hume's 
objections to the tenure of Sarawak to be valid, what 
practical result could follow ? Would he deny the right 
of a free people to re-elect the ruler of their choice ? 

The people of Sarawak are a free people^free in the 
truest sense of that term^free to frame their ovm govern- 
m£nt, and free likewise to administer i<,t and any en- 
croachment on this admitted right, common to all 

• Mundy, vol. i., p. 385. 

t F. 0.— Parliamentary papers moved for but not yet presented 
to the Hduse of Commons^ 1853 ; and Despatch, November, 1852. 



SIB JAMES BI^OKE, E.C.B. 189 

communities, whether large or small, would be a 
wrong, only to be efiected by violence and an infringe- 
ment of the principles upon which every free govern- 
ment rests. 

Mr. Hume, however, is ignorant of the true posi- 
tion which I occupy ; he is ignorant that, in 1846, the 
Earl of Aberdeen expressed to the Netherland Minis- 
ter his " satisfaction that the Netherland Government 
should be disposed to do justice to Mr. Brooke's con- 
duct, since his possession of Sarawak ;" that every 
precaution should be taken to prevent the occurrence 
of the complications apprehended by the Netherland 
Minister ; but that " Her Majesty's Government could 
not allow the apprehension of their possibility to inter- 
fere with their duty to protect tfie rights and interests 
of Her Majesty's subjects ;" but should any proposi- 
tion be made, " showing a due regard for the natural 
and acquired rights of third parties, and of Her Ma- 
jesty^s subjects,^^ such a proposition should be taken 
into the most favourable consideration. Mr. Hume is 
ignorant that Lord John Russell, as the Prime Minis- 
ter, knowing the position I held in Sarawak, thanked 
me, in the name of Her Majesty's Government, for the 
services I had rendered to my native country; that 
the flag hoisted at Sarawak was sanctioned as a com- 
mercial flag by the English Government, which had 
previously declared that it sought to avail itself of 



190 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 

"wiy relations'^ with that country. He is ignorant 
that the President of the United States addressed me 
as the ruler of Sarawak, proposmg a treaty of friend- 
ship and of commerce with America ; that Lord Pal- 
merston, being previously informed, oflFered no objection 
to the contemplated treaty, when the subject was men- 
tioned in Parliament ;* and, lastly, my position in 
Sarawak has been known and tacitly acknowledged 
during the last ten years, by England, and by the other 
countries of Europe. 

I lay no great stress upon these formal or informal 
sanctions from without. I have the support of the 
people to confirm such a cession made by Brun^, as 
England might formerly have made of France, or that 
the Two Sicilies might now make of Jerusalem. I 
insist upon the practical question : a government has 
been established which is administered by the chiefe 
and people ; the scanty population has increased to 
sixty thousand or more souls ; and security, order, and 
prosperity, have succeeded to rapine, oppression, and 
famine. In 1842 the trade of Sarawak was conveyed 
by a few native prahus, and in 1852 it employed 
twenty-five thousand tons of shipping ; from a strag- 
gling village Sarawak has increased to a considerable 
city — a busy and thriving mart, where the European 

* Times, 28th March, 1851. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. i 91 

mixes on kindly terms with the native ; where crime is 
infrequent, and where authority is supported by the 
people. Could such success spring from a narrow and 
sordid policy ? 

The tree must be judged by its fruit, and when the 
question has been divested of passion and of prejudice, 
men will wonder that such notorious facts, were not be- 
lieved upon testimony, and could not be verified, with- 
out inflicting an individual injury. 

The government of Brun^ has long since lost all 
command over its subordinate possessions ; they have 
cast ofl^ their allegiance, and for years past have paid 
little or nothing towards the support of the sovereign 
or of his court.* Where there is no power to restrain, 
there is a tendency towards lawless excess, in many of the 
communities ; and though the establishment of the go- 
vernment of Sarawak has in a great measure checked 
this downward tendency, and has encouraged the well- 
disposed, it has not resulted in the formation of similar 
governments in the other rivers. This is to be attri- 
buted to the want of confidence in their chiefs, to the 
incapacity of the chiefs themselves, or to their un- 
scrupulous use of power ; so that the numerous com- 
munities of the coast live in a state of internal distrac- 
tion or depression, and the countries they inhabit, are 

* Mundy, vol. i., p. 189. 



192 PBIVATE LETTERS OF 

not developed to commerce, or to the application of 
European capital, merely from the absence of good 
government. 

In 1845 I had arranged to apply a remedy to this 
state of aflairs,* and with the consent of the Brun^ 
rulers, I was to have commuted all claims for a 
revenuet (which they could rarely obtain without 
coercion, if they obtained it at all), J for a fixed yearly 
sum to be paid, on the condition that each subordinate 
government should be left to regulate its internal ad- 
ministration. I have ever since adhered to the proposed 
arrangement, /or I possess thatpotoery and that influence 
from my position at Saratoak^ and from the success 
attendant on the government established there, which 
would enable me to form inexpensive establishments in 
the various localities ; and either to make over the 
surplus revenue, whenever it should accrue, to the 
Brun^ Government, or to commute the taxes, which 
should be justly paid according to former custom, for 
a fixed sum, as previously proposed. Some plan of 
this sort would be a great benefit to the sovereign and 
to the nobles of Brun^; it was proposed by them 



* Vide note at the conclusion. 

t Mundj, voL ii., p. 26. 

X The more powerful communities resist the authority of Brund, 
whilst any attempt to coerce the weaker ones or to oppress them 
would lead to their taking refuge in Sarawak. 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 193 

recently to the English Government, and it would 
afford them an interest in the advancement of their de- 
pendencies. It would likewise be a blessing to the 
various communities, by affording them security, per- 
manency, combination, and increasing prosperity ; and 
it would, by the progress of good government, and by 
the development of the richest countries in the world, 
become in due time an object of great national import- 
ance to England. There can he no trade without go- 
vemment; and trade must always be confined to its 
lowest limit, where the producing classes are not remu- 
nerated for their labour, or where there is insecurity 
for life or property. Such has unfortunately been the 
case, throughout the Eastern Archipelago for very 
many years past. England is content with an empo- 
rium where trade is free ; but the trade sold in the 
market of Singapore, is often wrung from the toil of the 
starving Dyak, or is stained with the blood of the 
peaceful trader. We have no knowledge ; we have no 
influence ; we make no exertion ; we shrink from in- 
terference in native states ; we effect no good, because 
we fear a possible difficulty : substantial advantages 
are lost for want of action ; and the fairest lands are 
abandoned to piracy, barbarism, and the worst evils of 
misgovemment. Let any man consider what would 
be the result on English trade, should such a state of 
affairs accrue. Let him reverse the picture, and con- 

VOL. III. K 



194 PfiiyATE LEITEBS OF 

aider what the commerce of the Eastern Archipelago 
might become, under the same circumstances of security 
and of peace^ which England has so long enjoyed. This 
is no visionary dream of improvement — it rests on the 
simplest principle of political economy, and has been 
practically demonstrated in Sarawak, Let similar go- 
yermnents be established ; let a similar kindly deve- 
lopment follow; let a yearly increasing trade spring 
up, and the north-west coast of Borneo akne will be- 
come of importance to the commerce of Great Britain. 
This is no sinister project of mine, but one which has 
been recorded since the year 1845 ; and if there be 
some who will give me credit for evil motives, there are 
others, and, I trust, a £a,r larger portion of my coun- 
trymen, who will agree with me that this measure is 
for the benefit of the native princes, for the happiness 
of the native population, and for the advantage of 
England. For myself I might yain increased power, 
with the increased burden of responsibility and miscon- 
struction. 

Mr. Hume has said that I have been supported in 
Sarawak by the navy of England ; but I believe that 
this will be found as little consonant with fact as his 
other allegations. The naval officers have, under 
orders from their own government, on several occasions, 
acted against the piratical hordes which infested the 
coast ; but the suppression of piracy is a treaty obliga- 



SIB JAMES BBOOKB, K.G.B. 195 

tion imposed upon this country, and can only affeot 
Sarawak, as it affects the rest of the world in a greater 
or lesser degree ; beyond this, a man-of-war has occa- 
sionally visited Sarawak, in the same manner as th^ 
visit the ports of other countries, without any inter- 
ference with the internal afiairs of the government, and 
with the real object of protecting British subjects and 
British commerce. I plead guilty to having availed 
myself of the prestige of such visits to advance the cause 
of order, although 1 never claimed any authority in 
consequence of them ;* and I have on all occasions 
found a smcere desire on the part of the naval officers 
to advance what they considered for the interests of 
their own country, or of mankind. They have most of 
them enjoyed ample opportunities of forming a judg- 
ment from local knowledge and experience, and on this 
.account, have ever been the most consistent, in de- 
nouncing the mischief and the injustice of the course, 
which Mr. Hume has pursued. 

I have little more to add. Mr. Hume can gain 
nothing by his persevering abuse of me; he cannot 
even accomplish so paltry an end, as my ruin. If to- 
morrow I retire into private life, the relative positions 
of Sarawak and of Brune would not be changed ; the 
former would maintain the independence it has 

* Keppel, vol. i., pp. 320—326. 

K 2 



196 PRIVATE LETTERS OP 

aohieved, and which has been declared for the past ten 
years. The impulse of good government has been 
given — ^the blessings of order and security have been 
appreciated, and no legal quibbles — ^no fine-spun dis- 
tinctions — no unfair suppressions or unwarrantable 
inferences, can avail against the will of a free people. 
The right of a people to resist oppression, to punish 
crime, and to live under the government it has esta- 
blished, is undoubted ; it is a right which Mr. Hume 
cannot disturb — it is a right which the justice of Parlia- 
ment will not disturb, 

Mr. Hume can gain nothing; but he may lose 
much. At an advanced age he may forfeit the reputa- 
tion he has publicly staked — he may lose his self- 
respect as he becomes aware that he has .lost the 
respect of his countrymen.* At the extreme verge of 

* *' We ABE OF OPINION THAT SiB JaMES BbOOKE ODGHT NOT 
TO TAKE LEGAL PROCEEDINOS AGAINST Mr. HuME FOR THE 

LIBELLOUS MATTER contained in the Pamphlet laid be- 
fore us. 
''The charges contained in that Pamphlet are onlv bepe- 

TITIONS OF others LONG SINCE MADE, AND FULLY ANSWERED. 

''We cannot ADVISE Sib James Brooke to embark in an 

ENORMOUSLY EXPENSIVE LITIGATION FOR THE PURPOSE OF RE- 
PELLING IMPUTATIONS, WHICH, NO ONE BUT THE WRITER OF THE 

Pamphlet is likely to believe. 

(Signed) " FRED. THKSIGER. 

HUGH HILL. 
JAS. S. WILLES." 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, BLCB. 197 

ikian's life, he may feel the bitterness of vain strife, and 
Wake to the sense, that in striving to injure me, he has 
injtu*ed the natives of Borneo. Why, therefore, this 
fierce contention — why the words of hatred and of 
indignity, with which his writings and his speeches 
abound; a just cause would be better promoted by 
moderation, and violent declamation be well exchanged 
for a sober appeal to facts, based upon credible and 
legal testimony I Until Mr. Hume does this, he will 
be pronounced uiytist by all those, whose opinion is of 
value ; and although his motives may not be evil, he 
cannot be justified in urging accusations without a 
shadow of direct proof. I bear him no ill-will, and as 
all that he has said or done have never influenced my 
past conduct, so all that he may say, or may do, will not 
disturb my future course. The past is now beyond 
recall ; the Sultan of Borneo has gone to render his 
account to God for the murder of his relatives ; the 
city of Brune is distracted by rival claimants to the 
throne ; the friends of order (shorn of power and of 
talent since 1846) are again opposed to the piratical 
and ill-disposed; we shall hear of massacre and of 
bloodshed; the government will pass away amidst theif 
fierce conflict of deedSj and not of idle words ; and yet 
with these impending evils, Mr. Hume jstill strives to 
prevent my exerting the influence I possess, to reconcile 
contending factions, or to place the worthiest claimant 



1 98 PRIVATB LETTERS OF 

on the throne, and thus to save the sovereignty from 
extinotion. I am bound to the son of Muda Hassim 
by every sentiment of honour. I would save him from 
the &te of his unhappy father and unole, and I would 
teach him by precept and by example to govern his 
people justly. 

The peace, the progress, the prosperity of Sarawak 
are the best assurances of what may be done on that 
coast by a just maintenance of power> combined with a 
kindly influence over the native mind. I have desired, 
to reconcile the progress of good government among 
the natives, with the advancement of Ihe commerce of 
England. I still 'desire to serve my country, mth 
honour to myself, and with usefulness to her, and it is 
only when this can no longer be done that I shall 
assert the independence I feel, and which I prize above 
all other earthly distinctions. To you, my dear Str, I 
owe a debt of gratitude^ which I am proud to acknow- 
ledge, and which I will repay in the manner most 
pleasing to your feelings, by the defence of the eause 
of truth, and of justice, of ike injured, and of the iimo- 
oent. 

I long to escape from these ceaseless heart-burnings 
and vain contentions. It is with pleasure, miz^d 
indeed with some regret, that I shaJl leave this 
country ; and whether in public or in private life, I can 
find a home in the land where I am respected a&d 






SIB JAHES BBOOKE, E.C.B. 199 

belpyed ; and whatever may be the course of eyents^ 
wfaaterer the progress of tune may bring me, of evil or 
of goody I ca^. calmly appeal from the. present to the 
future, .and from the judgment of man to the justice of. 
his Maker. 

Believe me, 

&c. &c. 

J. Brooke. 

P.S. — Since concluding my task, I have been in- 
formed that. there are some gentlemen who, allowing 
the piratical character of the Serebas community, and 
the justice of the punishment inflicted at sea, entertain 
a doubt, whether the expedition on shore^ to the places 
they inhabited, can be justified. 

I pointed out this mode of proceeding to Her Ma- 
jesty's Government in 1845, and it may be presumed 
that it met with their concurrence, or it would not have 
be^ permitted in action. This course is recommended 
by common sense, as the most effectual way of protect- 
ing the innocent from the depredations of the guilty. 
It is supported by the opinions of the ablest jurists. I 
may instance the opinion of Chancellor Kent, viz., that 
** pirates are everywhere pursued and punished with 
death,'^ Commentaries, vol. i., p. 183, ed. 1844 ; and of 
Sir Stephen Lushington— " Nor is it to be supposed " 
(he observes) " that the name of pirate does not- attach to 



^- 



200 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

perions oa shorcy but merely to persons at sea^ who muwt 
home some residence on shore.^* Vide Keppel's Visit to 
the Indian Archipelago, vol. i., pp. 226, 227. Fur- 
ther than this, it has been practically acted upon by 
all nations, at all times. By the English, Americans, 
Spanish in the West Indies, by the English in the Red 
Sea, and by the Dutch, and Spaniards, and English 
in the Eastern Archipelago ; viz., by the Dutch, the 
inhabitants of the islands of Vordate and of Flores were 
severely punished for their piracies. Two piratical 
retreats were burned and destroyed on the south-east 
coast of Saleyer ; at Sekana the houses were fired as 
well as the prahus, &c. &c. &c. By the Spanish the 
island of Balanini was utterly destroyed, and every 
inhabitant, of the pirate community that escaped the 
attack, was carried away. Sulu was likewise attacked, 
and the city burned for piracies alleged to liave been 
committed, &c. &c. By the English the city of Sam- 
bas was attacked and destroyed. Captain Chads, of 
the " Andromache " frigate burnt and destroyed some 
piratical haunts on shore. Captain Keppel, in 1843-44, 
destroyed and burned Serebas and Sakarran. Sr 
Thomas Cochrane, in 1845 and 1846, destroyed Mal- 
ludu, &c. In 1849 Captain Farquhar repeated the 
punishment of the Serebas ; and on all these occasions 
the proceedings were approved by Her Majesty's 
Government. 



Sm JAMES BROOKE, K.C.K 201 



NOTE TO Page 192. 



The reasons which induced me to attempt the settlement 
of the coast are expressly recorded, Mundy, vol. ii., p. 26 ; 
but^ in spite of this, Mr. Hume urges the accusation, that I 
designed to suhjuigate the rivers contiguoiis to Sarawak. He does 
not instance a single hostile act unconnected with the sup- 
pression of piracy, and the only expression he can find in 
support of his accusation, is that 1 desired *Ho establish 
Sarawak influence and rule." Mr. Hume, however, as an 
acute literary critic, must be prepared to weigh the sense of 
a single form of expression, with parallel passages in the same 
writing, and I shall not despair of convincing him, that the 
words he has quoted will not fairly bear the sense he wishes, 
or warrant the accusation he has advanced. 

The following extracts, as exhibiting Mr. Hume's ordinary 
mode of reaching the goal for which he strives, are interest- 
ing, and on any less serious subject would afford amusement. 



Mr. HmMi's version. 



Sir /, Brookes text, with its context cmd 
explanatory passages. 



Borneo Papers, 1846, 
p. 59. 



Letter to James Gardner, Esq., 1841, 
p. 30. — " From the imbecility of his ne- 
phew, Omar Ali, the affairs of Borneo are 
entirely «i the fiands of the Rajah Muda " 
(Hassim). Page 27.—-" The Rajah Muda 
Hassim came from Borneo to suppress it ** 
(the rebellion). Pages 32, 33.—" I pro- 

K 3 



1 



202 



PRIVATE LSnTBBS Of 



Mr. Jlume^a version. 



Sir J, Brooke's text, voith its context <md 
expUxnatory passages. 



Benieo Papers, 1846, p. 
59. 



''It is highly desirable, 
therefore, to remove Muda 
Hasssim and his suite to 
Borneo Ptoper, not onlj 
from his being mischievous 
here [at Sarawak], but 
from his presence being 
necessary in the capital, to 
uphold our influence there. 
I hope to effect this through 
Eeppel's kindness, &c." 

(Thus it would appear 
that the rajah, Muda Has- 
sim, a prince of the blood 
royal, unde of the imbecile 
sultan, who managed en- 
tirely the afSurs of Borneo, 
was about to return home 
to his native city in 1844, 
according to arrangements 
made in 1841. 

Borneo Papers, 1846, p. 
59. — W ith the neighbouring 
rivers our grand struggle is 
BOW approaching, and I am 
n^ioed that it is so, for it 
will at once bring about 
what otherwise might have 
cost us years to effect, our., 
the removal of all the bad 



pose the following steps," Srdly, " To re- 
turn with the Rajah Muda Hassim to 
Borneo Proper, and through his means to 
establish an English infivence,** Kqppel, 
vol. i., p. 320, 1842.—'* The Sultan, Pan* 
geran Usop, Pangeran Mumein, aud others, 
declared ' Borneo would never be well till 
he (Muda Hassim) came back.' " 

Borneo Papera, 1846. p. 59.— " Hib 
Pangeran (Muda Hassim) and his brothers, 
do no actual mischief, but there is a slight 
tendency to petty intrigue, and a great 
drawback to trade whilst they are present, 
for no native will trust himself within 
reach of his rajahs if he can help it. 

** It is highly desirable therefore, to 
remove Muda Hassim and his suite to 
Borneo Proper, not only from his being 
mischievous here, but from his presence 
being necessary in the capital to uphold 
ow influence (•*. e., British influence) 
there. I hope to effect this through Kep- 
pel's kindness, &c." 



Borneo Papers, 1846, p. 59.— « With 
the neighbouring rivers our grand stru{^ 
is approaching, and I am rejoiced that it u 
so; for it will at once bring about what 
otherwise might have cost us years t* 
effect, viz,, the removal of all the bad 
and pestilent rajahs and their followers, 
and the establishment of Sarawak influence 
and rule over the contiguous rivers. Oooi 



snt JAMES BBOOEE, e:.c.b. 



203 



Mr, HunK^s version. 



Sir J, Brookes text, mth its context and 
explanatory passages. 



and pestilent rajahs and 
their followers, and the es- 
taUishment of Sarawak in- 
fluence and rule over the 
contiguous rivers." 

(How does Mr. Hume 
justify the suppression of 
the context ?) 

Idem, p. 59.— "The re- 
moval of the had and pesti- 
lent rajahs and their fol- 
lowers.'* 



(I was not, therefore, 
writing ahout Muda Has- 
sim, as Mr. Hume supposes, 
but the term "rajah" is 
commonly applied in a ge- 
neral sense to a man of 
rank.) 

Idem, p. 59. — "The es- 
tablishment of Sarawak in- 
fluence and rule over all the 
contiguous rivers." 

(Mr. Hume again sup- 
presses the context to suit 
his purpose!) 

There are numerous pas- 
sages relating to "British 
influence," " our influence," 
" my influence,*' " Sarawak 
ittflnence," which should 
limit the sense of the latter 
expression. 

Vid. Mundy, vol. i,, pp. 
343, 344—376. Borneo 
Papers, 1843, p. 12, &c. 

Mundy, vol. i. 268, 269. 
Mr. Hume states that the 
ridt of the " Diana " 
steamer to Sarawak, as I 
observed, " strengthened 
my position " and " other- 



and evil are now fairly pitted against each 
other, and I repeat again, I am glad of it, 
JHeaven help the right!** Page 60 of the 
same letter : " Seriff Sahib marking his 
course with rapine, retired to Sakarran." 



Idem, 1846, p. 60, — " Linga has, or 
had its resident demon, Seriff Jaffer. Sa- 
karran has a small Malay population, at 
the head of which is Seriff MuUer. The 
Dyak population is very numerous and 
highly piratical. Seriff Sahib was bom 
in Sakarran ; for many years he was the 
sole ruler of all the rivers, destroying the 
Dyaks, oppressing the Malays, employing 
the Sdarrans on frequent piratical excur- 
sions, and fostering all the Illanun and 
other pirates. The influence of these 
Seriffs must be entirely broken, and their 
persons banished." 

Idem, p. 59. — " The establidiment of 
Sarawak influence and rule over all the 
contiguous rivers." 

Idem, p. 60.—" The tOmost good will 
result to every river along the coast, for 
they mil then look to, and appeal to us, 
and we may gently influence their various 
governments V* 



Letter from Sir James Brooke to Cap- 
tarn Sir Edward Belcher, 1843. 

" The virtual ruler (of Borneo Proper) 
would in fact be a British servant m dis" 
guise,** 

Keppel, vol. i., pp. 234, 244.— « They 
were therefore excessively frightened when, 
a week afber the " Swift," the " Diana " 
steamer entered the river. / had the plea- 



204 



PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 



ifr. Hvmi^9 version. 



Sir J, Brockets text uHth its context and 
explanatory passages. 



wise did good to my cause, 
by creating an impression 
among the natives of my 
power and influence with 
the Governor of the Straits 
settlements." 

(How does Mr. Hume 
imagine I can prevent a 
popular impression ?) 



sure of calming their fears, and was too 
generous to push matters to a settlemmtt, 
during the two days the steamer remained^" 
et seq. 



Relative to the same negotiation, arising 
out of the detention of the crew of the 
« Sultana," in Borneo Proper, I stated 
to the sultan, ** That I uxis not a man in 
authority, or belonging to the East India 
Company," — Keppel, vol. i., p. 320. 



These extracts afifbrd a fair speoimen of Mr. Hume's hanestff 
in his literary character ; but there are other amusing perver- 
sioDS of facts and of meaning. He asserts that I took Muda 
Hassim aboard a man-of-war, to Brun6 (p. 9). How could I 
take any one on board a ship of war ? Again— the native 
Datus resisted the sultan's authority for several years before 
my arrival in the country — my interference induced this 
people to lay down their arms ; that affcer nine months sub- 
sequently passed in vain endeavours to establish the power of 
Muda Hassim, i, e., endeavours made by Muda Hassim him- 
self, that prince handed over the country which he could not 
govern, to me ; and the Datus and people accepted^my govern- 
ment, as they had before accepted my mediation (p. 6). This 
Mr Hume declares to be a contradiction ! 

Page 13 shows that in 1844 I wrote that *' I could not sport 
an independent monarchy," and that in 1852 I declared (the 
circumstance being altered), that *' I held my position at 
Sarawak as emanating from the will of a free people, to choose 
its own form of governments" Is there anything new or 



SIR JAMES BBOOEE, K.CB. 205 

astonishing in this } Do not changes of circumstances heget 
changes of government? Do not nations progress from 
dependence to independence 1 Do not people advance from 
slavery to freedom ? Would Mr. Hume push back the dial of 
time, and maintain the divine rights of despots and despotic 
governments? 

No man has better reason to complain than myself of the 
means which have been used to make out a case against him, 
X correspondence of eight years (of which I retain no copy) 
has been quoted, doubtless in the same manner that Mr. Hume 
has quoted from my published Diary. Another private cor- 
respondence with an intimate Mend, which was accidentally 
obtained, and secretly copied, has been employed with the 
same object of injuring me. The evidences of tivo captains of 
tiie East India Company's marine, have been magnified into 
the evidences of four officers, to give 9, prima facie importance. 
A memorial addressed to Mr. Hume by fifty-three merchants 
—who were not merchants — has been dwelt upon as though 
it contained something beyond a desh'e for inquiry, founded 
on a profession of ignorance ! A letter was written, and 
** cooked " for William Henry Miles, who could not have written 
it himself! Eighty pounds sterhng was offered for the copy 
of a letter which was supposed would prove injurious to my 
cause ! and tJie Government of BrunS was instigated to make 
complamts to the Qtieen of England against my proceedings; 
and this conspiracy not succeeding, a fabricated statement 
was made out, which Mr. Hume still parades as an evidence, 
though it has been disowned by the princes of Brun6, and by 
them exposed. Mr. Hume ought to distrust the honesty of 
bis informants, or honest men wiU distrust him ! 



206 PBIVATE LE1TEB8 OF 

So complete and oyerwhelming a defence was cooei' 
dered the finale to this long contest, and it was felt 
that with the House of Commons, Mr. Hume, however 
urgent, would have but little chance of obtaining a 
hearing. Sir James Brooke was preparing to depart 
for Borneo, and had signified to the Government his 
intention of leaving Southampton on the 4th of April 
for that purpose, when to his surprise and that of 
every one of his fnends, within ten days of his de- 
parture, he heard, through an indirect channel, that 
the Ministry had determined to concede the Commis- 
sion to Mr. Hume, and that in fact such determination 
had been come to, fully three weeks before ; and thus 
either from a combination of party, or some other un- 
known cause, an inquiry which had been denied by 
large and repeated* majorities of the House of Com- 
mons, and considered unreasonable by the great body 
of Englishmen, was yielded to the pertinacity of one 
man, who had fairly wearied the Government into 
what will ever be regarded, as an act of great per- 
sonal injustice, without one object to recommend it 
upon public grounds. It is fit that these truths should 
be told, as it explains the natural feelings under which 
the succeeding letters of Sir James Brooke were written. 
The intention of Ministers to grant the inquiry was 
followed in the month of July, by the publication of the 
* See vol. ii. p. 205, note. 



SIR JAHES BROOKE, K.aB. 207 

instructions to the Governor-General of India to select 
the Commissioners. Those instructions appeared so at 
yariance with the known facts of the case, that the 
Editor considered it his duty to address to Lord 
Clarendon a protest against them, which, with the letter 
of instructions, and the correspondence that ensued, will 
be found in a subsequent chapter in the order of 
their dates. 



208 PBIVATE LimEBS OF 



CHAPTER VI. 

March 17, 1853, to June 28, 1863. 



No. 175. 
John C. Temfleb, Esq. 

Banger's Lodge, Hyde Park, 
March 17, 1853. 

My dear Jack, 

I. COULD not manage to get to you to-day. 
On Friday (25th) I return to town ; on the 31st, I 
want to go to Albury to say good-bye to Mr. Drum- 
mond and Lady Harriet — could you go with me ? The 
1st April I am to pass at New Cross and Greenwich, 

and will you ask and to dinner too? I 

shall thus be able to say good-bye to two men, whom I 
admire. Headlam can't come to dinner, and my en- 
gagements have closed in upon me ; but if .1 get off 
an engagement for the 28th, which is uncertain, I 
should like to go down to Southampton on Saturday, 
the 2nd, and we could have all Sunday to ourselves 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 209 

there. Perhaps would come too,' and John 

Harvey. 

John Harvey would, perhaps, come up and meet 
me at your house on the 1st April. You see the arrange- 
ments I am making at Hannah's expense. 

Ever affectionately yours, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 176. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

White Lackington, March 24, 1853. 

My dear Jack, 

T SHALL come over and see you on Saturday, 
either between eleven and twelve, or twelve and one. 
I have Kkewise written to Mr. Drummond about our 
proposed visit. I am getting into that dubious state, 
to make me believe that I may, by possibility, be 
walking about on the crown of my head. 

The identity of WilMam Henry Miles* has arrived ; 
— ^his alias was not Peter Soyd, which we made into 
Peter Lloyd, but Peter Sidd; — the circumstances of 
the police report exactly the same as Mr Adam's 

* This man Miles was the aUeged writer of a letter, produced 
by Mr. Hume, as a testimony against Sir James Brooke, and read to 
the House of Commons, as that of a credible, well-informed person. 
See Hansard, vol. 113, July 22, 1850. Mr. Drummond, by reading 
a real letter of this person, proved that Mr. Hume's letter was 
either cooked or forged. 



210 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

depositions. Mr. Adam saw Peter Sidd once, (as I 
remember,) and heard of him being at Labuan on 
another occasion. The police description tallies with 
the man in age, stature, eyerything but hair, and 
he has lost a joint of the fore-finger on his right hand ! 
I hope you will be able to go to Mr. Drummond's on 
the 31st — I have written to him about it On Sunday, 
we can go together to Southampton. I will not sleep 
at New Cross, but we will make a night of it never- 
theless. 

Ever affectionately yours, 
J. Brooke. 

We are pretty well here ; my short stay makes me 
regret that I have been here so little. 



No. 177. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Steamer " Bengal," off Cadiz. 
April 9, 1853. 

Mt dear Jack, 

It was twelve o'clock on Tuesday, owing to a 

fog, before we got through the Needles, and now we 
are enjoying the most delicious weather conceivable, 
so genial that it is a pleasure to lounge on deck, or the 
open air. The "Bengal" is, without exception, the 
finest vessel of her class that I was ever in ; we have 
tried her on several points, and in a head sea she 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, E.G.B. 211 

hardly pitches, from her great length, and though 
narrow, she rolls easily, and not deeper than other 
steamers. She has gone, with sails set, fifteen knots 
and oyer ; and though two days it was blowing hardish, 
with a head sea, she will average over ten knots. 

Her only defect that I can find, is, that the vibration 
firom her screw is somewhat inconvenient, and, as you 
may observe, afiects my handwriting; and they say 
that, in common with other iron vessels, her compasses 
require attention, which, so long as she does not run 
ashore, is no business of mine. 

As for the proposed inquiry, I can see nothing but 
good that can result, provided that it be/atV, and that 
the Government has no evil design. 

I write with great difficulty, my dear Jack ; I am 
not troubled about myself, but my moral perceptions 
have been much shocked by the course pursued. 

I am much better in health ; the excitement of the 
last week has passed away, and has not left any re- 
markable depression. Man and man's judgment is 
but a little thing, and a struggle against evil, though 
it be noble, is very disagreeable. It fortifies the 
character, however, and if rightly used, imparts a 
degree of charitable feeling, which we too much re- 
quire. Farewell, dear friend, 

Ever yours affectionately, 

J. Brooke. . 



] 



212 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 



No. 178. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Steamer " Oriental," Red Sea, 
April 23, 1853. 

My dear Jack, 

Aden will be the last place, where I cau 
inform you of our progress, previously to the termina- 
tion of the voyage. We had three miserable days 
crossing Egypt, but the climate was glorious, and 
made amends for the discomfort at Suez : we found 
the steamer waiting for us, and this is our second day 
aboard. The weather is now geniah You English 
puff and blow at the first touch of the sun's rays, and 
cry out like the fishes, when he shines on them perpen- 
dicularly ; for myself, I enjoy it, and sit in my easy 
chair, or lounge on my sofa, free from the petty con- 
tentions of life for awhile, and ardently desiring to be 
free altogether. I see my way very clearly, and at a 
distance from England, I have a cool and steady 
judgment ; and J shall not come to any hasty resolu- 
tion ; but I shall proceed to Brune, as soon as possible 
after my arrival, and in some degree be guided by the 
result of my measures there. I hold myself now to be 
quite clear of the public service of England, and as 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.R 218 

holding my appointment* solely for the convenience 
of Government I cannot see, on what basis I could 
in future serve, unless my position was defined, and 
some assurance given, to restore the confidence which 
at present is wanting. 

I shall want fi*om Keppel, lus orders to Captain 
Gordon, of the " Royalist," between June and 
September 1848, because it has been said, that 
Captain Gordon had an order to remove Bums, before 
the " Phlegethon " went up to Bintulu. 

Tell Mr. Drummond that I will write him, 
directly I have anything to say worth his hearing. 
There are always difficulties writing aboard a steamer, 
and I am very disinclined to write at all. — Farewell. 
« Oriental," 26th April. Off Aden. 

We are approaching Aden, and I shall embrace my 
dear niece. 

The heat has been considerable, but considering 
the season and the locality, very bearable.* My poop 
cabin I find comfortable, and I often long to have you 
here with me for a few weeks — you would enjoy ii so 
much. Hannah may frown if she pleases, but she 
herself^ spite of her dislike to foreign lands, and her 
clinging to her dear, old, dingy, cloudy England, would 

* The appointment of Commissioner and Consnl-Greneral at a 
salary of 500/. per annum, which Sir James Brooke did not vacate 
on his retirement fVom the Goyemorship of Labuan. 



214 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

be pleased to see from afar off, the sites of Israel's 
wanderings — Horeb and Sinai, and the deserts of Sin. 
I wonder, if this wilderness of Sin is an allegorical, or 
a real place. Bad as the reality may be, how mtich 
worse that flowery wilderness, where we pluck the fruit 
of Eden (or Aden) amid soft music and sweet sounds — 
or where the arid rocks of hatred, malice, and un- 
charitableness look black in the wilderness of life! 
However, we must flounder through the desert, before 
we amve at the land of promise, and if we find a 
shady nook by the way, we must in our allegory, 
compare it to a good wife, merry children, and warm 
friendship. Charlie Grant, like myself, returns with 
pleasure to the East, and he enjoys himself vastly 

aboard. too has become used to his new element, 

and the cockatoo has safely performed his land journey, 
and is in good health. 

Do not be afraid, my friend, to act, for really after 
two years' daily discussion, we have not yet disagreed 
on a single course of action. Be bold — for that is the 
temper of my mind, and if I am cautious, it is only to 
help me to strike the harder. Farewell, with my kind 
love to all your party at Hatcham, 

Ever your friend, 
J. Brooke. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 215 

No. 179. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

" Oriental," Point de Galle, 
May 5, 1853. 

My dear Jack, 

Our voyage progresses favourably, and of 
course I have nothing to tell you. We have had a 
few days hot weather, but the monsoon came last 
night in torrents of rain, with thunder and lightning 
to cool the atmosphere, and the rest of the way will 
not be disagreeable. We shall to-day make the 
Lacadives — the specks on the ocean in Sanscrit an- 
tiquity and name — ^and the day after to-morrow shall 
change our steamer at Ceylon. 

I hope there to get news of all being right in the 
Sakarran and Rejang ; if it be so, I can take the rest 
quietly enough. 

6tk. — Nothing to add, but I shall try to convey the 
news from Sarawak to-morrow. 

I wrote to Keppel not to forget to pve Tilsey, my 

little dog, to Mrs. , whenever she sent for it. I 

hope she has got it. Pray remember me most kindly. 
Love to Hannah and the children. 

Galkj May Ith^ 1853. — I add these few lines in 
the midst of bustle, to say that, as far as I can learn 
from the vessel on the China line, there is no news of 



216 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

importance from Singapore or Sarawak ; so far so good, 
and you may conclude it to be favourable news, unless 
I send you a second letter. Farewell, 
Ever dear friend, 

Yours affectionately, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 180. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Singapore, May 16, 1853. 

My dear Jack, 

We arrived yesterday, and my mind was much 
relieved by the Sarawak accounts, offering nothing 
fresh to deplore. Since the news* I forwarded from 
Aden, the material events, so far as I can learn, have 
been, that a bala of forty prahus have put out (from 
Serebas probably), and after killing some of the 
Sarawak people, fishing at Sumpideen, near Tanjong 
Datu, have proceeded on the prosecution of their 
intertribal war against the Netherlands, to ravage the 
coast of Sambas. Brooke was at sea, in the hope of 
intercepting this fleet, and I pray, he may make mince- 
meat of them after the manner of 1849. 

I had a long letter from Brereton, dated 26th 
April, downcast by Lee's death, and his first reverse, 
but written in an admirable spirit, and begging me 
♦ This was contained in a letter from his nephew Captain Brooke. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, E.C.a 217 

not to judge his conduct or policy, by recent events, 
or rumours. I gather from his letter that the mass of 
the Dyak population are in his favour, and sincerely 
desirous of abandoning piracy ; and our friend Gasim, 
without even mentioning to Brereton his intention, 
walked away into Runtap's country, and destroyed 
twenty villages. Now that we have begun in earnest, 
you will see, my dear Jack, that we will humble these 
pirates by a course of strong-handed measures. I 
may not be a clear-sighted statesman, but I will cut 
any man's throat, that asserts that I am not a general. 
You know how tender I have been, in avoiding occasion 
of raising up internal strife amongst these commu- 
nities, and this evil has been brought about by the 
English Government. There need, however, be no 
complaint, where there is no redress required. 1 shall 
devote myself, with a single heart and mind, to the 
suppression of this piracy, and the protection of Sara- 
wak. I know, that the energies and the heart of every 
good man, woman, and child, will be with me, and I 
shall not be misled again by lukewarm politicians. I 
wish I had time, and 1 would give you a sketch of m} 
measures, but it will be better from Sarawak, and it 
shall be accompanied by a chart on a large scale. 

The news from China is startling, we shall soon be 
disgraced there, or obliged to spend another million 
or two in a war. The rebels are said to be ill« 

VOL. WL L 



2 1 8 PRIVATE IJSTTERS OF 

disposed to foreigners. The Burmese war is beginDii^, 
and the admiral is obliged to leave it, to take care of 
itself. 

It is a great truth, as yet undiscovered by the 
politicians of Europe, that a body of a certain size, 
requires a government in prop(»iion — and decency 
forbids that we should only cover half at a time. I 
am too lazy to write to anybody else, but my 
sster ; so pray do you, dear Jack, tell Cameron that 
Ruppell is safe and well at Sarawak, and that he has 
only to say the word, and he shaU start for England. 
The required informatiion shall be sent, so as to arrive 
by August next I shall write to the Breretons by the 
next mail, but will you either send them this letter to 
read, or extract what I have said of their son ? I 
have written to give him every encouragement. Love 
to Hannah. My kind regard to Mr. Drummond and 
Lady Harriett. Adieu — Charlie Grant sends regards 
too, and is quite well. 

Eyer yours, dear friend, 

J. Brooke. 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 219 

No. 181. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Singapore, May 25, 1853. 

My d(ear Jack, 

To-MOHROW I sail in a small merchant-craft 
for Sarawak, and Labuan, and Brun^, to strengthen 
my relations with the government of the latter place, 
in whatever hands it may be. There is no doubt but 
that Mr. Motley has been intriguing largely in Brune 
against me, but I shall, perhaps, not only have to undo, 
but to expose his machinations. 

The premature announcement of the Commission 
has called for another letter from me to Government, 
as it has given rise to attempts to get up evidence in 
this place, which will now continue till the Commis- 
sioners arrive, but which will be of no avail ; and the 
plotters know not the danger they incur of being con- 
victed of the fact of suborning false evidence. I 
know nothing more of the Commission, as it puts me in 
a fever of indignation ; for though reason comes out in 
the market-place, and convinces me that it is the best 
thing that can happen for myself, and perhaps for the 
poor people, yet men are blessed or cursed with feel- 
ings and passions, and an injustice is hard to bear, 
and hard to forgive, particularly when it is accom- 
panied, as in this case, by every circumstance of con- 
cealment, and of needless disgrace, and pain — disgrace 

L2 



220 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

80 far as the opinion of the world can inflict it Hume 
wrote a letter to the editor of the " Straits Times,"* 
which was published yesterday, and which I will en- 
close, if I can get it. This shows sufficiently the 
Qpmmunication between the Government and Mr. 
Hume. I have written to Keppel to send me his 
orders to Captain Gordon, of the " Royalist," relating 
to Mr. Bums, and do not forget to send me Miles's 
jail description. 

I am very glad to tell you, that by the last accounts 
we hold quite firm in Sarawak, and the Dyaks, though 
bullying and threatening, dare not come out. The 
evil to be feared is, that they may influence some of 
the interior Kayans, to view us as enemies, and this 
evil will arise from the weakness of the Government in 
not supporting us. 

I will not write more — I write with pain to myself — 
but you, dear friend, are often and often in my 
thoughts. I long to hear that you are a Master. My 
love to Hannah and the chicks, and say all that is 
kind to Mr. Drummond, Lovaine, Wm. Adam, Sir 
James, &c., &c. Send me the Sidney Herbert cor- 
respondence — ^Vale. 

Your aflTectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 

* Mr. Woods, the subject of the Butterworth correspondence, ante 
page 72. 



Sm JAMES BROOKE, KCB. 221 

The following is a copy of the extract from the 
** Straits Times " newspaper, containing, with an intro- 
ductory preface, Mr. Hume's letter. It appeared to 
the Editor proper at once to bring the subject to 
Lord Aberdeen's notice, and the correspondenoe that 
ensued upon it, will be found to follow : — 

Copy op Extract prom " Straits Times " 
Newspaper. 

**The fact has gone forth. — The inquiry which was 
so much needed by the lovers of truth, and which was 
not a whit the less dreaded by those, whose deeds 
were to be the subject of investigation ; that inquiry 
which has been so loudly and untiringly demanded by 
Mr. Hume, in Parliament, has at length been granted. 
The Borneo question is to be brought before the crown, 
the public, and the legislature, in a way that is likely 
to satisfy every inquirer after truth. On the night of 
March 15th, Lord John Russell, in answer to a ques- 
tion put by Mr. Hume, in the House of Commons, 
replied in an off-hand manner, that there would be 
' no inquiry.' Her Majesty's ministers were, how- 
ever, of a different opinion. A cabinet council was 
convened for the purpose, and it was resolved that an 
inquiry into Sir J. Brooke's conduct, should take place 
by Royal Commission. Hearing of this intention of 



222 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 

Government, Sir J. Brooke applied to his friends. 
Lord John Russell and Lord Palmerston, on the sub- 
ject, who referred him to the Earl of Aberdeen; but 
as Sir J. Brooke has long been aware of the opinion of 
the Prime Minister, as to the necessity of inquiry, he 
decamped forthwith, in order to prepare for the coming 
ordeal. This accounts for the rajah's sudden appear- 
ance by the last mail steamer. Sir J. Brooke is no 
longer Governor of Labuan, nor any longer " His 
Excellency." The nature and value of the credentials, 
with which he again appears among us, will be best 
known by the official correspondence we give below. 
Her Majesty's Commission will be directed to the Eiarl 
of Dalhousie, the Governor-General; and it is pro- 
posed, we hear, that the inquiry shall take place in 
the most public manner possible. 

" The following letter to our address from Mr. Hume, 
intimates that gentleman's concurrence in the measure 
adopted by the Cabinet. 

" ' To THE Editor of the " Straits Times." 

* London, April 8, 1853. 

« ' Dear Sir, 

" ' The interest you take in the afiairs of Borneo, 
and in my efforts to obtain an inquiry into the sacrifice 
of human life on the coast, and in the rivers in Borneo, 
and especially into the great loss of life on the 31st 



SIR JAMES BBOOEE^ E.C.B. 223 

July, 1849, induces me to communicate to you the 
present state of the questioa 

" ' I was desirous that an inquiry should take place 
into Sir J. Brooke's conduct before he left England ; 
and I had a notice on the books of the House, that I 
would move again for an inquiry.* 

" * The Earl of Aberdeen, the Prime Minister, having 
informed me, that he had determined that an inquiry 
should take place at Singapore by Royal Commission, 
under direction of the Earl of Dalhousie, in the same 
manner as the inquiry into the conduct of Lord Tor- 
rington, in Ceylon, in 1851, 1 have concurred in the 
proposed proceedings, and shall withdraw the notice 
that stands before the House of Commons, and hereby 
leave the whole in the hands of the Government. 

■' ' My. high opinion of the Earl of Aberdeen satisfies 

me that a full and fair inquiry will take place, and 

that justice will be done on this most important 

question. 

" * I am, &c., 

"*J. Hume.'" 

* The following notice is that alluded to by Mr. Hume :— 
Mr. Hume.—TYaX it is the opinion of this House that an imme- 
diate inquiry should be instituted into the grave charges now upon 
ih& table of the House, against Sir J. Brooke, and that it is the im- 
perative duty of Her Majesty's Government, to make the said 
inquiry full, searching, and effectual for the good of the public service 
and the muntenance of national honour. — {After Easter.) 



224 PBIVATE LETTERS OF 

Hatcham Lodge, New Cross, 
Augast 31, 1853. 

My Lord, 

As a frieDd of Sir J. Brooke, I have the honour 
to enclose the copy of an extract from a Singapore 
newspaper, purporting to transcribe a letter from Mr. 
Joseph Hume, which the editor does not scruple to 
speak of as an " official correspondence." That editor 
being the person denounced by Sir J. Brooke, as a 
libeller, in a communication addressed to the authorities 
in Singapore, which has been printed by order of the 
House of Commons. 

If Mr. Hume had authority from your Lordship, to 
make the statements, he has done in that letter, with 
every respect to your Lordship, you will pardon my 
saying, that they are at variance with what was under- 
stood by the friends of Sir J. Brooke, as the basis on 
which he consented to receive the commission ; but as 
Mr. Hume is in error in speaking of an inquiry into 
the conduct of Lord Torrington, at Ceylon — there 
having been no such inquiry there, as he of all persons 
must well have known-r-his own motion to that effect 
having been expressly negatived — ^perhaps he is equally 
in error in speaking of a communication from your 
Lordship, that there was to be an inquiry into the con- 
duct of Sir James Brooke. However this may be, my 
Lord, my duty to a valued and absent friend impels 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 225 

me to bring to your Lordship's notice, the use Mr. 
Hume is making, of what he at least is anxious to have 
considered, as the confidence Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment have been pleased to extend to him in this 

matter. 

I have, &c.> 

John C. Tbmpler. 

To the Right Hon. Earl of Aberdeen, 
&c &c. &c. 



Downing Street, September 3, 1853. 

Sir, 

Lord Aberdeen desires me to acknowledge 

the receipt of your letter of the 31st ult., enclosing 

copy of an extract from a Singapore paper, purporting 

to transcribe a letter from Mr. Joseph Hume ; and 

his Lordship directs me to enclose for your information, 

the accompanying paper, printed by order of the House 

of Commons, in explanation of the course pursued by 

Her Majesty's Government in the matter to which your 

letter relates. 

I remain, &c., 

Clinton G. Dawkins. 

John C. Templer, Esq. 



Hatcham Lodge, New Cross. 
September 9th, 1853. 

My Lord, 

I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt 
of Mr. Dawkins' letter, enclosing, by your Lordship's 

L3 



226 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 

direction, a copy of the instructions to the Governor 
General of India, '^ to issue a commission to inquire 
how far the position Sir J. Brooke holds in Sarawak is 
advantageous to the commercial interests of Great 
Britain." Those instructions, however, I had before 
seen, and as a duty to my absent friend, had trans- 
mitted to Lord Clarendon, a protest against thena, 
which is now in his Lordship's hands. I trust* there- 
fore, my Lord, you will allow me to observe, that those 
instructions are not in point with reference to my 
former letter; nor do they in any way acquit Mr. 
Hume of the misstatements he has made ; and with 
every respect to your Lordship, to repeat : — 1st. That 
at the time Sir J. Brooke left this country, it was dis- 
tinctly understood by him that the inquiry was not to 
be into his conduct, or to be carried on in any way m a 
manner derogatory to him. For, that I had his own 
statement, immediately after his interview with your 
Lordship. 2ndly. That there never was any inquiry 
in Ceylon, into the conduct of Lord Torrington. Mr. 
Hume was a member of the Ceylon Committee which 
authorized the inquiry in Ceylon, having for its object 
the ascertaining whether a certain proclamation alleged 
to have been issued by Captain Watson^ was issued and 
signed by him — Captain Watson asserting that his 
signature was a forgery. It is this inquiry which is 
mentioned in the instructions, and to which, perhaps, 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 227 

Mr. Hume refers. How he could coDfound and speak 
of it as a commission to inquire, in Ceylon, into Lord 
Torrington's conduct, when Mr. Hume's own motion 
with that object was expressly negatived by the House, 
except to serve some purpose of his own, it is difficult 
to imagine. He must have known the distinction ; and 
if regret at the part he took in those proceedings could 
imprint a deeper remembrance, ought not to have for- 
gotten ; for I believe Lord Torrington carries with him 
into private life, the sympathy of the great majority of 
hifi countrymen, at the manner the attack on him was 
conducted. 

If, therefore, • my Lord, Mr. Hume is allowed to 
make these assertions as it were upon authority, and to 
accredit a local newspaper as ^ Government organ, it 
is more than ever important, and I say it with every 
feeling of respect, that their direct contradiction should 
be brought frankly and fearlessly to the notice of your 
Lordship. 

I have, &c., 

J. C. Templer. 
To the Bight Hon^ Earl of Aberdeen, 
&c. &c. &c. 



1 



228 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

. No. 182. 

John C. Templer, Esq. 

Sarawak, June 28, 1853. 

Mt dearest Friend, 

Brooke wrote by the last account, that I had 
been attacked with small-pox, in a mild form. It 
proved not to be so— the scourge came upon me with 
a terrible severity ; we had no medical man, and I 
placed myself in the hands of a gentleman of Arab 
descent, acquainted with the native treatment of the 
disease — three of my old followers devoted themselves 
night and day to my case, and my cousin, Arthur 
Crookshank, has tended me with an affectionate care, 
to which I owe my life. 

For fifteen days I lay raging with fever, or shiver- 
ing with the cold water, which they threw over me 
in my bed — my mind wandering, and without sleep, 
lingering between life and death. My constitution 
triumphed over disease, and after a prolonged sleep, 
brought on by a dose of opium, pven me by Crook- 
shank, I woke sensible to the loathsome state to which 
I was reduced; literally from head to foot I was 
seamed with this frightful disorder ; and feeble as an 
infant, I strove to reconcile mjrself to the will of God, 
who had afflicted me. 

Since then I have been improving, and am now 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 229 

clear of the disgusting part of the disease, though I 
fear, my friends must learn to know me under a 
different face to any I have yet worui towards them. 

I have now many alleviations, peace of mind and 
ease of body. Twice a-day I bathe in water deliciously 
fragrant with flowers ; and with a good appetite, I am 
regaining strength, though slowly, and able to sit up for 
an hour or two daily. Such has been my past history 
of the month— little to tell of, but much to go through. 
How I rejoiced in the intelligence that you had 
obtained the mastership— on every account it is most 
desirable. 

Now to business. I quite concur in what 

says — nothing can be more noble or more friendly 
than his letters, and I have no doubt that they will 
carry due weight with his own party. * 

Lord 's statements to Mr. Drummond are the 

most extraordinary in the world, and I should not care 
in the least for the inquiry, were it not for the marked 
spirit of the Government. 

We will wait then patiently, and see what comes of 
it, and with Lord Dalhousie's selection of two or three 
good men from Lidia, I still believe it will be shown 
that the Government is the responsible party for every- 
thing that has been done, excepting the good, which 
has resulted from my efforts. When I witness the 



230 FRXVATB LETTEBS OF 

security which reigns, and the prosperity and happiness 
of all classes here, the advance of the other rivers on 
the coast in the same direction, I cannot believe, after 
all that has passed, that this can lightly be destroyed, 
by the prejudices of any set of men. 

I write no more of this, for I am weak, and only 
say how happy I was at your opinbn as to the result 
of the writ of error, and should it go to the Lords, I 
have still no doubt of the result 

I do not answer Hannah's letter, though I too, could 
talk of cows and calves, and milk and butter. I con- 
gratulate her most sincerely on her new dignities. I 
shall always for the future address her as Mrs, Master 
TemplerHl 

Tell her, too, not to be horrified at my ugliness, for 
though I am fifty years of age, and did not boast of 
being handsome before, yet I know that a poor, scarred 
face is distasteftil to the female sex. I cannot help 
telling you, though it may look something like boasjir 
ing, of the many simple, yet touching tokens of kindly 
feeling, which have been erinced by the inhabitants of 
this place, since my illness. Many of the Mahomedan 
houses have nightly had prayers, and many have been 
the vows that, if God granted me life, they would pray 
with feasting. 

The Elings, our despised people of the Malabar 



SIB JAMES BBOOEE, K.C.B. 231 

coasts have distributed alms to the poor, as an offering 
for my safety; and the Chinese, after their fashion, 
hare made votive offerings for the same purpose. 

How I turn froQi the suspicions and abuse of some 
of my own countrymen, to the simple attachment of 
those who live about me ! 

The Dyaks are again quiet, and there is no doubt, 
that, with the mass of them living towards the sea, a 
great change is taking place in their habits, and that a 
propensity for trade, is gradually gaining ground over 
the habit of piracy, as that occupation becomes more 
difficult and more dangerous. 

Directly I grow strong enough, I shall go on to 
Borneo; to meet and arrange matters with the new 
sultan, and see what can be done for his good, and 
more for the good of the people. 

Brooke left me last night, to go up a mountain 
called Paningow, where we are about to build a small 
sanitarium as my residence; the climate there will be 
some six or eight degrees cooler than down below, and 
the scene is one of the most charming in the world. 
I could tell you a great deal more> being in a babbling 
humour, but I am somewhat tired, and my time is 
short. 

I have written this long letter, in the hope that you 
will show it, or parts of it, to my family, and some of 



232 PRIVATE l4ETr£RS OF 

my intimate friends — ^my uncle, my sisters. Dr. 
Bigby (36, Berkeley-square), the Archdeacon of 
lindisfame (my old friend, Richard Coxe, the late 
▼icar of Newcastle), and others nearer home to yoiu 

My kindest love to Hannah and to the children, and 
my best regards to Sir James, and all the party at the 
hospital, not forgetting William Adam. 

Farewell, my dear Jack, and to prove to you that I 
have some strength left, I put my own agnature to 
Charlie Grant's writing. , 

Your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooks. 



The following are the Government Instructions 
before referred to, with the correspondence which 
ensued upon them : — 



Sm JAMES BROOKE, E.CB. 



Copy of the Instructions that have been sent to the 
Governor-General of Ii^dia, directing him to 
issue a Commission to inquire how far the Position 
which Sir James Brooke holds in Sarawak is 
advantageous to the Commercial Interests of Great 
Britain. 

Letter from Sir Charles Wood, President at the India 
Board, to the Chairman and Deputy Chairman East 
India Company. 

India Board, June 2S, 1853. 

Gentlemen, 

I HAVE the honour to transmit to you a copy 
of a letter, dated the 2 1st instant, which I have re- 
ceived from the Secretary of State for Foreign Aflairs, 
informing me that it is deemed expedient that an in- 
quiry should take place with respect to certain matters 
connected with the position held by Sir James Brooke, 
the British Consul-General and Commissioner in 
Borneo, and that it should be convenient to Her Ma- 
jesty's Government that this inquiry should be con- 
ducted under the authority of the Governor-General 
of India in Council. 

As the interests of India are, in a great degree, 
connected with the trade of the Eastern Archipelago, 
and as persons fully competent to discharge the im- 
portant duty of this inquiry may be more readily 



1 



234 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

selected in India by the Governor-General than in this 

country, it appears to me that this investigation should 

be undertaken in the manner proposed by the Earl of 

Clarendon; and I request that you will moVe the 

Court of Directors of the East India Company to cause 

the draft of an instruction to the Supreme Government 

in India to be prepared accordingly. 

When the answer of the Court has been received, 

the several documents mentioned as enclosures to Lord 

Clarendon's letter will be forwarded to the East India 

House. 

I have, &c., 

(Signed) Charles Wood. 



Letter from Lord Clarendon, at the Foreign Office^ 
to Sir Charles Wood, India Board. 

Foreign Office, June 21, 1853. 

The attention of Her Majesty's Government 
having been drawn to certain anomalies in the position 
at present held by Sir James Brooke, Her Majesty's 
Consul-General and Commissioner in Borneo, and to 
certain inconveniences thence arising, I have to inform 
you that it is deemed expedient that an inquiry should 
take place with respect to these matters, and that it 
would be convenient to Her Majesty's Government 
that this inquiry should be conducted under the 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.O.B. 235 

authority and by the direction of the Governor-General 
of India in Council. 

In addition to the oflSce above adverted to, of Her 
Majesty's Consul-General and Commissioner, which 
constitute Sir James Brooke guardian and protector of 
British trade generally throughout the district to 
which his commission extends. Sir James Brooke, by 
virtue of certain possesinons held by him originally 
under the Sultan of Borneo, but now, as he states, in- 
dependently, by the free will of the people, claims to * 
be considered as one of the independent rajahs of that 
country, and is stated to be engaged in trade on his 
own account in the produce of those possessions. 

Her Majesty's Government are of opinion that the 
apparent conflict of the multifarious duties which attach 
to these positions afford a valid and just ground for 
the proposed inquiry. This inquiry will at the same 
time enable Her Majesty's Government to judge 
whether the conduct pursued by Sir James Brooke, 
since his appointment, and the relations which he holds 
with the native chiefs, have been such as are becoming 
a servant of the British Crown, and conducive gene- 
rally to British interests. It will also give to Sir 
James Brooke a fit opportunity of meeting the various 
charges which at different times have been brought 
against him. 

In pursuance of the object which Her Majesty's 



1 



236 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

CrOYemment have thus in view, I have to request that 
the Court of Directors may be moved to take the sub- 
ject into their consideration ; and I have to express the 
wish of Her Majesty's Government that the Court will 
send instructions to the Governor-General of India to 
select two or more prudent and impartial persons to 
act as Commissioners for the purposes of this inquiry ; 
and, if he should see fit, to give to those Commissioners 
the assistance of a legal adviser and of the necessary 
interpreters ; and the Governor-General should furnish 
them with instructions for their proceedings, based on 
the contents of the present letter. 

It is the intention of Her Majesty's Government 
that the Commissioners should, in the first instance, 
proceed to Singapore, on account of the facility which 
that possession, as centre of the trade with the Eastern 
Archipelago, would aflPord for the collection of evidence 
bearing on British commercial interests. As it will, 
however, be necessary that power and authority should 
be given to the Commissioners for this purpose, to 
compel the attendance of witnesses within the jurisdic- 
tion of the East India Company at Singapore, and to 
examine such witnesses on oath, 1 have to suggest that 
the Indian Legislature should pass an Act giving the 
necessary power to the Commissioners, the terms of 
which should conform as nearly as possible to the terms 
of an Act passed by the Grovemor of Ceylon in respect 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 237 

to a late inquiry in that island, a copy of which I here- 
with enclose. 

The period for opening the inquiry having been 
fixed, the Commissioners will give notice thereof to the 
authorities at Singapore and to Sir James Brooke, and 
will invite the latter to attend, and will afford him 
every facility for so doing ; and for this purpose the 
Admiral commanding on the station will receive in- 
structions to place at the disposal of the Commission 
such naval means of transport as they may require, 
either for themselves or for the conveyance of persons 
who may have to attend the inquiry as witnesses, or 
otherwise. 

The first question to which the Commissioners m\\ 
have to direct their inquiries is, whether the position 
of Sir James Brooke at Sarawak, either as holding 
that possession of the Sultan of Borneo, or, as he now 
alleges, as an independent rajah, holding it by the 
free choice of the people, be compatible with his duties 
as British consul-general and commissioner for trade, 
and with his character of a British subject. 

With reference to this portion of the inquiry, it is to 
be observed, that by no act of Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment has countenance ever been given to Sir James 
Brooke's assumption of independence, and that his 
possession of Sarawak has never been considered other- 



238 PBIVATB LETTEB8 OF 

wise by them than as a prirate grant bestowed by a 
foreign soyereign upon a British subject 

In the next place, the Commissioners will hare to 
inquire whether the interests of Sir James Brooke, as 
a holder of territory, and as a trader in the produce 
of that territory, are compatible with his duties as 
consul and commissioner for trade, to promote and 
foster the general trade of other British subjects. 

Thirdly, it will be the duty of the Commissioners to 
inquire into the accusations brought against Sir James 
Brooke by British subjects, whether in their private 
capacity, or, as in the instance of the Eastern Archi- 
pelago Company, in a corporate capacity, of having 
sought to injure their interests, with a view to the 
promotion of his own. 

Lastly, the Commissioners will have to inquire into 
the relations of Sir James Brooke with and towards 
the native tribes on the north-west coast .^of Borneo, 
with a view to ascertain whether it is necessary that 
he should be intrusted with a discretion to determine 
which of those tribes are piratical, or, taking into view 
the recent operations on the coast, of calling for the 
aid of Her Majesty's naval forces for the punishment 
of such tribes. 

As in the course of the inquiry it may be expedient 
to move the Commissioners to some localities off the 



SIB JAMES BBOOKE, E.C.B. 239 

coast of Borneo, or to the island of Labtian, in order 
to enable them more efficiently to discharge the duty 
intrusted to them, and as it will in such case be 
necessary to confer upon them power and authority to 
exercise their functions at those localities, I have 
farther to request that the Governor-General be in- 
structed, as soon as he shall have made his selection 
of the Commissioners, to communicate their names and 
designations to the Court of Directors, in order that 
those names and designations may be inserted in an 
Order in Council, to be submitted to Her Majesty, 
giving power and authority to tiie Commissioners 
within the territories under the jurisdiction of the 
Sultan of Borneo, to compel the attendance of wit- 
nesses, being British subjects, and to examine them on 
oath, will be issued under the powers vested in Her 
Majesty by the Act of the 6 & 7 Vict., c. 94, intituled 
" An Act to remove Doubts as to the Exercise of 
Power and Jurisdiction l^ Her Majesty within divers 
Countries out of Her Majesty's Dominions," &c., and 
by the additional article to the treaty concluded on 
the 7th May, 1847, between Her Majesty and the 
Sultan of Borneo, granting jurisdiction in certain cases 
over British subjects within his dominions. 

Copies of the Act of Parliament, and of the treaty 
referred to, are herewith enclosed. 

As regards the power to be conferred on the Com- 



240 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

missioners within the jurisdiction of the island of 
Labuan, I have to request that the Grovemor-General 
be informed that the Lieutenant-Governor of that 
island will be directed to issue an ordonnance similar 
to that already adverted to which was issued by the 
Governor of Ceylon, 

As soon as the Commissioners shall consider that 
they are in possession of all the information on the 
several points to which their attention will be directed 
by the Governor-General, they will make a full report 
upon the matters submitted to them, and close the 
commission. 

As the expense of this inquiry will have to be home 
by the public, care must be taken to exercise the 
strictest economy in carrying out the wishes of Her 
Majesty's Government 

I enclose, for the information of the Commissioners, 
one volume of papers, containing, first, a confidentially 
printed copy of the correspondence which passed pre- 
viously to the appointment of Sir James Brooke, and 
secondly, copies of the several papers and documents 
relating to this matter which have at various times 
been presented to Parliament. 

I further enclose copies in manuscript of letters 
from Sir James Brooke, from which you will see that 
he is desirous by every means m his power to further 
the objects of the inquiry, together with copies of 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 241 

certain documents which Sir James Brooke, in his 
letter of the 2Dd of April, states that he wishes to be 
in possession of the Commissioners, and which are not 
included in the other printed papers herewith trans- 
mitted. 

I likewise enclose a printed copy of a letter from 
Mr. Hume, together with three volumes of papers 
annexed to it, contamiug his charges against Sir James 
Brooke, and the points to which he considers that the 
inquiry should be directed. 

I have, &c., 
(Signed) C larendox. 



Hatcham Lodge, New Cross, Deptford, 
August 1, 1853. 

My Lord, 

I PERFORM but a simple duty to an absent 
friend in protesting, at least until he has seen them, 
against the tenor of certain instructions, that have been 
issued for an inquiry in the case of Sir J. Brooke. I 
do so, I need scarcely assure your Lordship, with ex- 
treme reluctance, and because from my intimate know- 
ledge of his proceedings both in Borneo and at home, I 
feel I can demonstrate to your Lordship the incorrectness 
of certain statements of facts which are assumed in your 
Lord8hip*s letter to Sir Charles Wood as the basis of 

VOL. III. M 



242 PRIVATE LETTEBS OF 

the inquiry, and as to which Her Majesty *s Govern- 
ment have been so clearly misinformed, that any report 
founded on them, could scarcely fail to inflict an 
injustice on Sir J. Brooke, as well as an injury to the 
national interests involved. To follow the order in 
which they occur: — 

1st. With reference to the first head of the inquiry, 
your Lordship states as a fact ** That by no act of Her 
Majesty's Government has countenance ever been given 
to Sir James Brooke's assumption of independence, and 
that his possession of Sarawak has never been considered 
otherwise by them, than as a private grant bestowed by 
a foreign sovereign on a British subject." Upon this 
I would call your Lordship's attention to the following 
facts as connected by their dates, — 

On the 1st August, 1841, the sultan granted the 
country and government of Sarawak to Sir James, then 
Mr. Brooke, thereby confirming a prior cession by the 
Rajah Muda Hassim. On the 14th September, 1843, 
a translation of this grant was forwarded to Sir Robert 
Peel by Mr. Brooke's agent 

On the 14th September, 1844, Lieut-Colonel 
Butterworth, Governor of Singapore, wrote to the 
Governor-General of India, for instructions how to act 
with reference to Sir J. Brooke's position in Sarawak, 
and refers to a fact noticed in the log of the " Phlege- 
thon," dated the 2nd day of September, regarding Ibe 



SIR JAMES BROOKE^ K.C.B. 243 

appointment of the Governor of Linga, by the 
Rajah Budrudeen and Mr. Brooke, as corroborating 
the supposition that the English were supporting the 
latter. 

On the 7th January, 1845, this letter was forwarded 
by the India Board to Viscoimt Canning. 

In the year 1846, Captain Keppel's narrative con- 
taining Mr. Brooke's journals, was published, which 
stated that on the 24th September, 1841, Mr. Brooke 
was declared Rajah and Governor of Sarawak ; that on 
the 5th November, in the same year, a court of justice 
was opened by him; that on the 10th January, 1842, 
he promulgated a simple code of laws for the people of 
Sarawak; and from the period of this publication. Sir 
J. Brooke has been commonly called in this country by 
the name of the English Rajah, or Rajah Brooke. 

In November, 1844, Mr. Brooke was appointed 
agent for the British Government in Borneo. 

In the year 1847, he received the appointment of 
Her Majesty's Commissioner and Consul-General to 
the sultan and independent chiefs of Borneo. 

In October, 1847, Mr. Brooke returned to England, 
was in constant commimication with the departments of 
Government, and left England in February, 1848, 
having received the further appointment of Governor 
of the Island of Labuan. He was thus administering 
the government of Sarawak within the knowledge of 

m2 






244 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

Her Majesty's Government at the time he was ap- 
pointed to this governorship. 

Early in the year 1848, Captain Mundy's Narrative 
was published, which details the punishment of the 
sultan for the murder of his relatives. 

On the I4th March, 1849, Sir J. Brooke communi- 
cated to Lord Palmerston that "he had hoisted a 
Sarawak flag as a distinguishing mark of country," and 
requests the sanction of Government to its use, on the 
ground that it would aflbrd a recognised permanency to 
the country. On the 20th June, 1849, Lord Palmerston 
replied that " Her Majesty's Government approved of 
Sir James Brooke's proceedings on that occasion." It 
is therefore very clear that Sir J. Brooke has always 
represented himself as governor of Sarawak, first as 
tributary to, and afterwards as independent of, the 
sultan ; and never in any manner as the holder of ter- 
ritory in the nature of a private grant, or as entitled to 
any property in Borneo, except in the right of the state 
of Sarawak. With respect to Sarawak, he has always 
acted as a ruler, independent of Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment. When, therefore, Her Majesty's Government, 
knowing this, and I may say in consequence of this, 
selected Sir J. Brooke as the person best fitted to 
extend British interests in those seas, conferred the 
above appointments, continued him in them, and at 
length approved of the use of a Sarawak flag as a dis- 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 245 

tinguishing mark of country, I must, as I before stated, 
as a friend of Sir J. Brooke, who is cognizant of these 
facts, protest against the unqualified assertion which 
forms the basis of the first query, viz. : — 

*' That by no act of Her Majesty's Government has 
countenance ever been given to Sir J. Brooke's assump- 
tion of independence, and that his possession of Sarawak 
has never been considered otherwise by them, than as a 
private grant bestowed by a foreign sovereign on a 
British subject." 

This assertion, connected as it is with the first ques- 
tion, entirely conceals from the Commissioners that up 
to a very recent period, Her Majesty's Government 
had no idea of those inconveniences which are spoken 
of as facts, in the commencement of your Lordship's 
letter; and certainly in 1851, the Right Honourable 
Mr. Gladstone had not come to that conclusion. In 
the debate of tlie 10th of July of that year, after stating 
that " in the personal feeling of hostility to the character 
of Sir J. Brooke he did not share, that he believed him 
in his heart and intentions, however liable he might be 
to errors of judgment, to be a man of philanthropy 
truly Christian," he goes on to say, " I cannot think there 
is any reason whatever, whether in respect of the general 
position of Sir James Brooke or in respect of the com- 
bination of offices in his person, however liable to 
criticism his position may be, I cannot think .an address 



246 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

to the Crown upon the subject would be expedient, 
either upon general principles, or altogether just to Sir" 
J. Br )i he." I need scarcely remark to your Lordship 
that a misconception on this point in the minds of the 
Commissioners, prejudges this essential portion of the 
inquiry. 

2ndly. Under the second head of inquiry, your 
Lordship speaks of Sir J. Brooke as a holder of terri- 
tory and a trader in the produce of that territory, 
while in the preamble your Lordship speaks of such 
trading as merely stated by others. I need not remind 
your Lordship that Sir J. Brooke alleges that such 
trading is precisely analogous to that of Her Majesty 
in the mineral productions of Cornwall, or in the Oaks 
of the New Forest. This distinction is important, as 
directly arising out of his position as rajah, or governor 
of the country ; and if it be understood by the Commis- 
sioners as a statement of fact, it could not fail to create 
a serious misapprehension on a very disputed point in 
the contention. 

3rdly. Under the third head, as to the accusations of 
the Eastern Archipelago Company, I conclude that your 
Lordship is aware that Sir J. Brooke, with the knowledge 
of Her Majesty's late Government, took proceedings by 
scire facias against that company, to cancel their 
charter, and for that purpose presented a petition to Her 
Majesty's Attorney-General, in which Sir J. Brooke's 



SIR JAMES BBOOKE, K.O.B. 247 

interest in cancelling the charter was distinctly stated ; 
• that judgment of the Court of Queen s Bench has heen 
given in that action against the company, for breaches 
of condition, under circumstances on the part of five 
directors, who subscribed a false certificate of capital, 
which Lord Campbell, in one part of his judgment, 
described as a "gross fraud," and in another "as 
gross misconduct established by the verdict of a jury,"* 
— that the company have brought error on that judg- 
ment not impugning the facts or the finding of the 
jury, but merely that under their charter the scire 
facias was not the proper legal remedy. The judg- 
ment of the Court of Error yet remains to be given, 
but of course as this injury is the deepest a corporate 
company is capable of receiving, and as Sir J. Brooke 
would scarcely have incurred the expense and trouble 
of the prosecution, except with a view of promoting his 
own interests, though not perhaps in the sense imputed 
in the instructions, it follows that> unless the accusa* 
tions of the Eastern Archipelago Company be confined 
as to time and place, but one answer can be given to 
this part of the third query, and that also upon facts 
which have exclusively taken place in this country, 
where only an inquiry as to them can be of any avail. 
4thly. The last query contains no statement of fact, 
but I respectfully submit to your Lordship, whether in 
* See the result of the writ of error» asUe p. 140, Editor's note. 



248 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

common with the whole tenor and language of the 
dispatch, it is not calculated to inflict a grievous injury ' 
upon a government like that of Sir J. Brooke's at 
Sarawak, which necessarily rests much upon opinion, 
and also to awaken deeper feelings than those of irri- 
tation in a mind like his. As instances, I point to the 
passage, as to intrusting him with a discretion to deter- 
mine what tribes are piratical, as indicating at the best 
in prospect but a very limited confidence, when he 
would require a fair and generous support. As a 
further instance, that the Serebas and Sakarran tribes 
are not even mentioned by name. Whether these tribes 
were or were not piratical, was the whole of the original 
question ; by it, the clamour was got up, and by it alone. 
Sir J. Brooke's enemies were enabled to mix up a 
number of minor charges, with that of a deadly crime. 
On these instructions the grave accusation, which, had 
there been the slightest faith left in it, should have led 
the van of the attack, is virtually abandoned. And as 
a further instance, that while the commission is to hold 
its head-quarters at Singapore, the place iirom whence 
the enemies of Sir J. Brooke have been in direct com- 
munication with Mr. Hume, Sarawak, the seat of Sir 
J. Brooke's government, and where his policy and its 
fruits, may surely be seen and judged, is not only not 
mentioned by name, but it is doubtfiil fix)m the expres- 
sion used, '* localities off the coast of Borneo," whether 



Sm JAMES BROOKE, E.c.a 249 

the Commissioners are empowered, however essential 
they might consider it, to go to that place at all* 

I cannot believe, my Lord, that these can be inten* 
tional defects in a document, which must affect for good 
or evil a large national interest ; for if they were, they 
indicate that Sir J. Brooke's adversaries could only 
hope for a decision against him, by presenting their 
case, upon statements which would prevent his entering 
into evidence, to show their fallacy ; and then, my Lord, 
1 may be permitted to express my conviction that Sir J. 
Brooke and his friends will never be satisfied without 
that further inquiry which in 1851 Lord Palmerston 
did not think it necessary to pursue. In the debate 
of the 10th July of that year, his Lordship said, ".Well, 
then, I say the whole accusations fall to the ground ; 
there is really nothing to inquire into, unless it be an 
inquiry (which I do not wish to pursue) into what 
could have been the source whence the various and 
persevering, and malignant persecutions proceeded- 
I do not apply that word to any course which has been 
taken in tliis House, but I must denounce these charges 
as malignant, and persevering persecutions of an 
innocent man. Sir, I am convinced that this House 
will, by an overwhelming majority, negative the motion 
of my honourable friend, and that by so doing they 
will proclaim to the world, that Sir J. Broooke retires 
from this investigation with an untarnished character, 

m3 



250 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

and with unblemished honour ; and I am persuaded 
that he will continue to enjoy the esteem of his country- 
men, as a man who, by braving difficulties, by facing 
dangers in distant climates, and in previously unknown 
lands, has done much to promote the conjmercial inte- 
rests of his country, and to diffuse the light of civilization 
in regions which had before been in the darkness of 
barbarism." Such an inquiry would then become not 
only necessary but indispensable to attain the ends of 
justice. The witnesses to be examined, and the 
evidence to be adduced, are in this country. The 
character of William Henry Miles,* one of Mr. 
Hume's earliest witnesses, by evidence recently arrived 
here, can be shown : and the inquiry would neces- 
sarily be incomplete, which would fail to expose the 
manufacture of that man's testimony. Mr. Hume 
and Mr. Wise are both here, and I feel confident that 
if it be extended to this country, with full power of 
examination as conferred in the recent election commis- 
sions, Sir J* Brooke will be able to demonstrate to the 
public the machinations by which this persecution was 
commenced, and the deep personal enmity by which it 
has been continued. 

In conclusion, my Lord, I cannot, although (and with 
pride I say it) I know Sir J. Brooke's sentiments and 
position as well as any man — I know his noble love of 
* This man is since dead. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.aB. 251 

truth, his keen sense of injustice, his self-respect and 
self-dependence, — I cannot, I say, foresee how he 
wUl receive these instractions ; he may be willing to 
consider them reconcilable with the purport of Lord 
Wodehouse's despatch, and with the more recent 
declaration of Lord John Russell in the House, and 
accept them as in accordance ¥ath the spirit, in which 
he understood the commission was to issue before he 
left this country; or he may, looking at the high 
interests of his adopted people, whose welfare and 
happiness he seems by Providence chosen to protect, 
consider that they depart so widely from that under- 
standing, as to justify him in refusing to meet a com- 
mission, which is to base its inquiries upon assumptions 
which strike at the very root of his native power; 
and I may be further excused in stating, that if the 
instructions were framed to effect the latter object, and 
to produce the antagonism which can scarcely fail to 
be fatal eventually, to every British interest, they 
appear to me to be likely to attain their object To 
avert so serious an evil, and to guard, as far as a 
humble individual can, the honour of my friend, must 
be my apology for intruding this protest on your 
Lordship. 

I have, &c. 
(Signed) John C. Templer. 

To the Right Hon. the Earl of Clarendon, &c. 



262 PBIVATE LETTEBS OF 



Foreign Office, September 9, 1853. 

Sir, 

I AM directed by the Earl of Clarendon to ac- 
knowledge the receipt of your letter of the Ist ultimo, 
protesting against the tenor of the instructions, which 
have been issued by Her Majesty's Government for a 
commission of inquiry into certain matters, affecting 
the position of Sir James Brooke, Her Majesty's Com- 
missioner and Consul-General in Borneo. 

In reply, I am directed to observe, that you are in 
error with respect to many of the statements contained 
in your letter, and that if your objections were valid, 
the inquiry which Her Majesty's Government have 
considered necessary, could not take place. 

I am further to remark that it is unlikely that Sir 
James Brooke would refuse to appear before the Com- 
missioners, who will be appointed to conduct this in- 
quiry, as he himself has expressed his anxious wish for 
an inquiry respecting every transaction in which he 
has been engaged, and has offered to give every facility 
for conducting it. 

I have, &c, 
(Signed) H. M. Adding ton. 

John C. Templer, Esq. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 253 



Hatcliam Lodge, New Cross, 
September 12, 1853. 

My Lord, 

I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt 
of Mr. Addington's letter of the 9th instant, in which 
he is directed by your Lordship to observe, that I am 
in error with respect to many of the statements con- 
tained In my letter of protest. With great deference 
to your Lordship I may be permitted to reply, that as 
no particular statement out of the many alleged to be 
erroneous, is mentioned, I might content myself with as 
general an assertion, that they are each and every of 
them correct, those of fact strictly so, and those that 
allege opinions, as £ar as my knowledge and belief 
enable me to form them. I will, however, do more 
than this, and as far as can be, without prolixity, main- 
tain them by saying, that the facts and dates which 
support the objection to the first head of the inquiry, 
are, either shown by public documents printed by 
order of the House of Commons, or relate to circum- 
stances which have taken place within my own know- 
ledge. That the objections which bear on the second 
head of the inquiry, are patent on the face of the in- 
structions themselves; while to the statements which 
relate to the third head, as to the proceedings and posi- 
tion of the Eastern Archipelago Company, I can depose 



264 PRIVATE LETTERS OP 

with direct certainty. Those proceedings were all taken 
within my own knowledge. I was an eye-witness of the 
trial, and can speak personally , if need were, to the 
accuracy of every statement in the protest, as to the 
procedure and present position of that unparalleled case. 
The fourth head then, my Lord, is the only one to 
which I conceive your Lordship's assertion of erroneous 
statement in the protest, can attach. In dealing with 
that head, I advanced an opinion as to the general tenor 
of the instructions, and cited three instances that ap- 
peared to me decisive of the adverse spirit in which 
they had been conceived. On this subject I should re- 
joice, my Lord, to find that my opinion was erroneous, 
that the passages I referred to as indicative of that 
spirit, have no such construction ; that Her Majesty's 
ministers, upon a return of the commission in Sir J. 
Brooke's favour, are prepared to accord his policy a 
fair and generous support ; that the question of the 
Serebas and Sakarran piracy is by them bona jide in- 
tended to be raised by the inquiry ; and that Sarawak 
as well as Singapore, is to be a place where the com- 
mission is to hold its sittings. If these things be 
according to the tenor of the instructions, I am the 
first, my Lord, to confess that I was in error with 
respect to them. I also trust, my Lord, you will allow 
me further to dissent from the conclusion of your 
Lordship, " that if my objections were valid, the 



SIR JAMES BBOOEE, K.C.B. 255 

inquiry which Her Majesty's Goverament had con- 
sidered necessary, could not take place." My protest 
was addressed against a particular inquiry— against 
an inquiry based on statements manifestly erroneous — 
on statements which could not stand the touchstone of 
truth ; but by no means against the inquiry which Her 
Majesty's Government had informed Sir J. Brooke 
they were about to issue ; and certainly not against 
that fall, fair, and searching one, that is now rendered 
so imperatively necessary ; an inquiry that will show 
Sir James Brooke on the one side, and his enemies on 
the other ; an inquiry that by its results will raise the 
question, whether some constitutional check cannot, 
and ought not, to be put on the license which now, 
apparently, enjoys an immunity of action, upon the 
character and fortunes of any public servant, and thus 
' from individual injury educe a general good. 

With regard to the concluding paragraph of Mr. 
Addington's letter, I trust, my Lord, you will forgive 
me if I speak plainly to your Lordship. Whether Sir 
J. Brooke will refuse to appear, remains lo be seen. To 
deal frankly with your Lordship, were I in his place, 
unless the erroneous statements in the instructions were 
amended,' by allowing Sir J. Brooke to dispute the fact, 
stated as the basis of the first head of the inquiry, after 
all that has occurred, I would not appear; and I should 
be qmte content to place my reputation and character 
upon the verdict of my countrymen upon that course 



266 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

against that of Mr. Hume and his associates. What- 
ever may be alleged to the contrary, Sir J. Brooke is 
independent in Sarawak, and that independence has 
been virtually acknowledged by Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment, and independent there, he will remain, unless 
Great Britain should make war upon Sarawak, as some 
return for the services her ruler has, according to more 
than one public acknowledgment, conferred upon his 
native country. I have now a letter before me, which 
speaks of the touching tokens of attachment which his 
recent iUness has called out from the people of his 
adoption. The Mahomedans nightly had prayers, and 
vowed, if God would spare his life, they would pray with 
feasting. The Klings distributed alms, as an offering 
for his safety, and the Chinese, after their fashion, 
made votive gifts for the same purpose.* How one 
turns, my Lord, from the suspicions of some of his 
countrymen, and the abuse of Mr. Hume, to these 
simple instances of attachment, I will only, therefore, 
say, that it should not be disguised from your Lord- 
ship, that, with every wish on the part of Sir J. Brooke 
and his friends to meet a fair, full, and searching 
inquiry, and to give every facility for conducting it ; it 
is on the condition, and that condition only, that it be 
fair, full, and searching ; and that, however triumphant 
to Sir J. Brooke the result may, and indeed as I know 
cannot fail to be ; still, in the opinion of his friends, a 
* See ante, No. 182< 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.a , 25? 

grievous personal injury has been already inflicted, by 
conceding it to Mr. Hume ; and it will need all the 
magnanimity and forbearance of the noble English 
character against whom it has been directed, to avert 
the national evils, that, in other hands, might readily 
have been worked by it. 

I have, &c., 

John C. Templer. 

Earl of Clarendon. 



Foreign Office, September 19, 1853. 

Sir, 

I AM directed by the Earl of Qarendon, to 

acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 14th 
inst, reiterating the statements and objections advanced 
by you in your previous letter of the 1st ult, with 
regard to the instructions issued by Her Majesty's 
Government for a commission of inquiry into the posi- 
tion of Sir J. Brooke, Her Majesty's Commissioner and 
Consul-General in Borneo ; and I am to observe to you, 
in reply, that as the Earl of Clarendon does not appre- 
hend that any useful object would be attained by con- 
tinuing this correspondence, his Lordship must decline 
to enter into a discussion with reference to the contents 
of your letter. 
• I am. Sir, 

H. M. Addington. 

John C. Templer, Esq. 



258 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 



CHAPTER VII. 

From July 6, 1853, to September 28, 1853. 



No. 183. 
The Rev. Archdeacon Coxe. 

Sarawak, July 6, 1853. 

My dear Archdeacon, and very dear Richard, 
If my own fortunes be depressed, and I have 
been afflicted with a cruel disorder which has brought 
me near to death's door, I have still reason to rejoice 
at the success of my friends. 

Your appointment to the archdeaconry gladdened 
my heart, more than I was abl^ to express to you, whilst 
I was in England ; and was followed by the agreeable 
intelligence, that my friend Templer had obtained a 
mastership in the Exchequer. 

I do most sincerely rejoice, dear Richard, in your 
success, and in his ; and with the one as well as the 
other, I prophecy that the first step is but the pre- 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, K.O.B. 259 

lude to a higher rise. Whether it be so or not, you 
have leisure and competence, and the capacity for that 
enjoyment of life which is bestowed upon us as a 



Let me hear, then, no more of headaches and ill- 
health ; and let the breeze on the mountain, and your 
happy fireside, eradicate from your constitution the 
impurities of the great commercial city of Newcastle. 

Of myself, I must give you somewhat of a history. 
A few days before I left England, to my great sur- 
prise, I learned, through a private channel, that the 
present ministry had not only decided on granting a 
commission of. inquiry into the affairs of Borneo, with- 
out a fiirther appeal to Parliament, but that they had 
been in communication with Mr. Hume on the subject ; 
whilst they had studiously concealed it from me, in- 
tending to carry it into execution, without my know- 
ledge. 

1 saw Lord and Lord on the subject, 

who, to their credit be it said, appeared ashamed of 
the transaction ; but from what passed, and from what 
has since occurred, I am quite convinced that the 
English protection and assistance will hereafter be 
withdrawn or evaded. 

The Government is embarrassed, however, as to the 
mode of carrying their intention into execution. 
The approval of the two former Governments (the 



260 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

component parts of which this ministry is composed) is 
so full and warm, of. the various measures pursued 
during past years, that they can hardly cast these 
decisions aside with impunity. 

The majorities in Parliament confirming the views of 
the ministry, are' likewise a stumbling block. And 
they are equally afraid of involving the reputation or 
conduct of their naval oflScers of high rank, by doing 
which, they would lead to a far more serious inquiry, 
which could only be carried on by an enormous outlay 
of money, and by a loss of many of their parliamentary 
supporters. 

Under these circumstances the commission must be 
circumscribed to investigate my position and acts alone, 
and will be a mere nullity ; or, should it go further, it 
will be found that the measures stated to be mine, 
emanated with the Government ; and that by far the 
larger share of the responsibility of their execution, 
rests with the oflScers of the Queen's service. 

For the commission I care nothing. I know that we 
have done right. I know that those people were 
pirates, and that the ordinary dictates of humanity 
required their suppression ; I would take the whole 
responsibility on myself. I do not shrink from a single 
act, for I know they are to be justified before God and 
before upright men ; but I was indignant and shocked 
at the concealment which aimed a petty government 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 261 

iDtrigue against an individual, and sought to conceal it 
from him, until he was separated from his friends and 
advisers. 

However, dear Richard, it is our duty to obey the 
Government which rules our country for the time being ; 
and I wait the commission, therefore, with something 
of curiosity, but nothing of fear. More than this I 
know not on the subject. 

I came out, as you are aware, early in April. I was 
not well when we got to the Red Sea. I said I would 
enjoy repose ; but it was only repose of body, for my 
mind preyed upon itself. I dwelt upon the persecution 
of five years — upon the wrongs which have been done 
me, and upon the crowning act, perpetrated by those, 
fi*om whom I should have found support. 

I arrived in Singapore, and after a fortnight's stay 
there, embarked for Sarawak. It was within sight of 
the mountains of my own land, that I was attacked by 
a frightful smallpox. I wrote an account of my illness 
to Templer, which I asked him to show you, so I need 
only add here, that I am convalescent, very comfort- 
able, with a good appetite, and just able to crawl, with 
a little support, from one room to another. 

I shall be a good deal disfigured ; but my friends 
will not esteem me the less, for being a little uglier 
late in life. 

I now look upon the commission with perfect com- 



262 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

placency ; I everywhere witness the marks of peace 
and advancement; even in the piratical settlements 
themselves, so great a change has taken place, that I 
am sanguine that, in two or three years more, we shall 
no longer require force to check the depredations of 
these tribes, upon their innocent and peaceful neigh- 
bours. My paper is exhausted ; but from the length 
of my letter, you may judge how free I am from official 
business, or political controversy, 

1 hope (the commission over) to have little to do 
with them in future. Let John Longe * know something 
about me, if you have time. And, although the yearly 
Valpesian dinner will be over before this reaches you, 
yet this, with the proceedings of the commission, will 
supply something, to tell of your poor president at the 
next meeting. 

My kind love to Mrs. Coxe, and your family circle, 
and dear, dear Archdeacon Richard, 

Believe me, your affectionate friend, 

J. Brooke. 

P.S. I write by the hand of Grant, because my 
eyes are weak, and I do not like to try them. 

♦ John Longe, Esq., Spixworth Park, Norwich. 



SIB JAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 268 

No. 184. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

Sarawak, July 22, 1853. 

My dear Jack, 

I HAVE been progressing favourably since I 
last wrote, and, though* of course still weak, have little 
to complain of I can walk a little, ride at a foot's 
pace a little, and write a little, though not comfortably, 
as from the severity of the disorder the nails on my 
hands are all coming oflF; however, I have reason to be 
thankful, and I trust I shall be a happier man, and 
perhaps even a healthier, in the time to come. 

By the last mail which we have received here, there 
was no letter from you, but Mr. M'Dougall made 
mention of you, which assured me you were not ill. 

There is now a mail waiting in Singapore, which has 
not been sent to us, and which now I shall not receive 
for six weeks to come. The admiral is on his way to 
China, via Labuan, where he is to stay a few hours to 
qualify himself to report whether it is worthy of retention. 
In my opinion, Labuan ought to be abandoned, because 
the Government of England have not made, and will 
not make, the necessary exertions to develope its capa- 
bilities and to ensure its success. Retrenchment seems 
to be the panacea for all evils, and all failures alike, 
and begets the very evil which we seek to avoid. 



264 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

I enclose you an extract of the admiral's public 
despatch to me ; it is unique as a specimen of policy in 
the Government of a large country. These orders 
from the Admiralty are in direct violation of our 
treaties with Holland, and with Brune. Such a course 
of action with pirates has never been pursued before, 
by any civilized nation, and is manifestly calculated to 
destroy our commerce, wherever it may be practically 
acted upon. Let either the Lanoon or Chinese pirates 
know, that we shall not molest them, unless they commit 
depredations on the English flag, and they would 
sweep away a million of commerce in these seas, which 
was bound to English markets in native bottoms. 

I have every reason to be satisfied with the condition 
of Serebas and Sakarran. The disaster which led to 
Lee's death, only proved the weakness of the piratical 
party and the strength of our adherents amongst the 
same people. 

The only question at issue between us, is, whether 
they shall put to sea in their wai^prahus for piratical 
purposes, Rentap, who was engaged with Brereton, 
retired, having little to boast of ; for though the loss 
on either side was very inconsiderable, it fell more 
severely on his, than on our party. Gasim, whom you 
have heard of, without European aid or encouragement, 
and without Malay support, raised his standard and 
was joined by three-fourths of the entire tribe, and 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 266 

marching against Rentap, captured his village and 
brought down not only his large warprahu, but also all 
his property. Rentap fled with a few followers. This 
prahu is famous in Dyak annals, as having captured a 
boat, in which were some six or eight of the royal 
family of Pontianak ; a Dutch gun-boat was present, 
but could give no support to her luckless consort ; the 
crew of which were decapitated, before they could 
reach the scene of action. The guns belonging to the 
Malay prahu, and the rich krisses, ornamented with 
gold, belonging to these unfortunate princes, were 
amongst the property taken from Rentap. 

Were we now to abandon our forts, and sneak out 
of the policy which has heretofore been pursued, the 
piratical party would again gain the ascendancy, and 
their fleets would ravage the coast as they did before 
my advent ; but by holding firmly, we are correcting 
their evil propensities, and the mass of the population 
which always leans to the side of power, are inclined 
to support us. 

I hope in another week to be strong enough to pro- 
ceed to Labuan and Brune. 

I want to know what the rajahs are about, and to 
settle our relations with them, for it is really no use to 
allow all these fine rivers to continue without a govern- 
ment and with resources undeveloped ; it is the only 

VOL. m. N 



266 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

chance the Borneon rajahs have, of recoveiiDg a shadow 
of power and a suitable maintenance. Were I to leave 
matters to take their course, the very name of govern- 
ment would cease to exist in Brune, and these foolish 
fellows, in their own pettish jealousies, do the: best to 
ruin themselves, as well as their opponents and to 
render aflkirs irretrievable. 

I think I have now exhausted my budget of political 
news. 

I have built a house on the Paninjow Mountain, 
where I shall reside on my return jfrom Brune, and 
where I expect to find it several degrees cooler than our 
locality below ; it is about twelve hundred feet high, 
and the view, almost as fine as it is possible to conceive. 
At present we are suffering from very hot weather, 
which is rare with us. Everything is quite quiet and 
prosperous. We have five schooners and brigs loading 
in the river, and great improvements have taken place 
under Brooke's rule during my residence in England. 

Give my best love to Hannah and the chicks^ and 
regards to the Bridport and Greenwich party. I shall 
write to Hannah upon our domestic arrangements, 
when I have more strength and know a little more 
about them. 

Farewell, my dear Jack, do not fail to give my kind 
regards to Drummond when you tell him my news. I 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.R 267 

admire him more and more, when I reflect on what he 
has done and contrast him with other politicians. 

Ever, &c., 

J Brooke. 



No. 185. 

John C. Templer, Esq. 

Brig " Weraff," off Tanjong, Barram, 
September 12, 1853. 

My dear Jack, 

So soon as I could muster my scattered strength, 
I set sail from Sarawak to Labuan, and after staying 
there a few days, passed over to Brune. Pangeran 
Mumein had been advanced to the nominal sovereignty, 

and , to all intents and purposes, was his prime 

minister-— on either side was Pangeran — = — and the 

party of the late Muda Hassim, and Pangeran , 

and the family of the late sultan. I went frankly to 
work, expressed how sincerely rejoiced I was, at the 
accession of so good a man as the present sultan — 
offered to support him in every way, and pointed out, 
that any civil commotion between the above-named 
factions, must lead to the dissolution of their govern- 
ment and sovereignty. The clouds cleared off, and it 
soon appeared, that for three years, my enemies had 

n2 



268 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

been hard at work to undermine my influence, but 
without effect, excepting the statement, that I was hosr- 
tile to Mumein, and would never acknowledge hia title 
to the throne. I heard all their defamation of my 
character — their exaggeration of the pending commJs- 
sion — their efforts to procure evidence — their assertion 
that I was disgraced and beaten at every point, &c., 

— all this I heard ; but gave me two letters, one 

addressed to the sultan, and one to himself, by Mr. 
Napier,* and delivered by Mr. Motley ; these letters 
are apparently guarded^ but very damning to the cause 
they are intended to sustain. They both intimate, that 
the Queen of England has resolved upon an inquiry. 
" The Queen wishes to know whether the Serebas have 
enemies^ and whether they attack (or disturb) every 
English vessel passing along the coast.'* The Queen 
wishes further to know this and that — setting forth in 
the Queen's name, and making it seem that the writer 
was authorized to convey the Queen's wishes to her 
royal cousin, when in fact and in truth Mr. Napier could 
know nothing of the subject of the commission, except- 
ing what he had heard from common report. * * 
* * * In short, my dear Jack, I told all 

the rajahs the whole affair of this commission. I gave 
them much wholesome and good advice about the con- 
duct of their government : and I was fully and firmly 
* The late Lieutenant-Governor. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 269 

reinstated as their friend and adviser. Without the least 
difficulty, the sultan ratified the former sultan's grant of 
Sarawak ; and we arranged the future government of 

the other rivers from Sarawak to , which are to be 

in my hands on the payment of a yearly revenue of 

and half the surplus revenue whenever derived. 

The is my fast friend ; and one and all scout the 

idea of the commission, and are not moved in the 
slightest degree by all that has passed. Mr. Hume 
no doubt will say, that I procured the ratification of 
this grant of Sarawak by force, for I was living in 
the sultan's palace, and my vessel (a merchant brig) 
not even off the city ! The rest of the story is 
soon told. I returned to Labuan for a few days — 
sailed for Sarawak — off this point of Barram fell in 
with a barque aground, (belonging to the Eastern 
Archipelago Company) I returned for assistance, and 
we are now passing the same point ; the " Royalist,'' a 
vessel of war employed in a survey, being at hand. 
The breeze is fair, and in a week at farthest, I hope to 
be at home, after an absence of two months, to receive 
the accumulated intelligence from you, and from the 
commission, if it be ready. The commission now may 
come whenever it pleases, and the sooner the better. 
I need only add, that my health has greatly improved, 
and that I am better than I have been for some time 
before. I am not hideous now — only simply ugly, and 



270 PRIVATE LETTEES OF 

1 certainly improve by the smoothing of the skin. 
Vale. 

nth. Off' Sink. — I wish you would send me your 
new address very plainly written. 

Sarawak^ 23rd September. — Safely arrived at home, 
finding all well. There is intelligence (in some measure 
to be relied upon) that Buah Riah, the refractory chief 
of Serebas, and Kum Nipa, a Kayan chief of the 
Rejang, have agreed to cut off our fort by treachery. 
The former part of this report I believe, the latter is 
doubtful ; but it is certain, that when Buah Riah 
passed our forts, and committed the brutal murders I 
informed you of, he intrigued with Kum Nipa, and 
his statements may have rendered the latter suspicious. 
Forewarned forearmed I They toill not take our fort, 
whether by treachery or by force ; and if the Kayans 
like to break their heads against it, the fault is not 
mine, for I have only recently made the most iiiendly 
advances to Kum Nipa, and sent him my Governor's 
uniform as a present. In the mean time I shall make 
every effort to conciliate the Malay community of 
Serebas, so that they may check, and in time govern 
the Dyaks. Sakarran is safe. Linga is flourishing. 
Charlie Grant rules at Lundu, but I intend to remove 
him to Sadung, where I form a government, as soon as 

I can. 

« « « « « 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 271 

In Sarawak our progress is most satisfactory, and 
even our revenue is not deficient for our present want. 
I am going to allow the Chinese to farm land, and this 
will lead to the cultivation of pepper and gambler. 
But the most important measure about to be carried 
out, is the taking the Dyaks from the Datus into my 
own hands — of course giving them an equivalent sum 
from the revenue, in money. This has long been an 
object near my heart, and the time has now arrived, 
when I can carry it out with safety and with advantage 
to all parties. This will bring twenty-five thousand 
Dyaks under the direct rule of the English, and we 
shall see them advance as I wish. Brooke has been 
up at my mountain residence at Paninjow, where he 
reports, it is cold enough for a fire and blankets. When 
I get over the business I have to do, and provided I 
can keep the peace with honour, I shall retire there. 
On Saturday next I meet the country , to explain the 
present position of the Government in relation to 
Brune, to England, and to Serebas. 

This is our intelligence, and I now turn to your 
letters : — 

1st. Having assented to the commission, forbearance 
is our proper course. Delay, however, is a serious 
evil and a just cause of complaint. It is an injury 
done to thousands besides myself, and completely para- 
lyzes our local government. The copies of Keppel's 



272 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

orders are very satisfactory, but you have forgotten to 
authenticate them, and I should like a line from Kep- 
pel, addressed to me, stating that the copies forwarded 
to you, are the only orders he issued relating to Mr. 
Bums leaving Bintulu, and that there were no secret 
instructions to remove him. Will you likewise look 
over all the Parliamentary papers, and send me what- 
ever may appear useful. 

2ndly. The sooner the commission comes the better. 
The government of Brune never has, and never will 
(excepting by force), acknowledge the exclusive tencM* 
of that deed ; and it will insist upon a bona fide execu- 
tion of the work, or set the Company aside altogether, 
as they retain the right of way in their own hands. 

3rdly. I am a fate to the Serebas ; and having 
now brought half of that community over to my way 
of thinking, it would indeed be wicked to allow the 
murder of many hundreds of people, when my efforts 
can save them, merely because the English Govern- 
ment looks black. ♦ * ♦ ♦ 

Mr. Wise, I am informed, has resigned all his valu- 
able privileges and prizes guaranteed by the deed of 
settlement. The Parliamentary paper referred to by 
the Company, is the affirmation of the original grant, 
but not defining its meaning in any manner. As I 
have said before, the Brune government read that 
dociunent as I do, and stated officially to the Lieu- 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K C.B. 273 

tenant-Goveraor of Labuan, that they did so, during 
my absence. I am glad you have determined upon 
publishing the correspondence, and I hope it will 
include the letters to my mother, because a man 
cannot be suspected of playing a part there. We 
have many firiends in common, but there are others I 
should like to distribute the work to, and if the number 
we have be insufficient, purchase a dozen or more for 
me. Besides, I should like one copy nicely bound for 
my library, and six other copies for distribution in 
Singapore, forwarded overland. The latter may come 
out at once — the bound copy follow. You should 
state in your preface, that some omissions were unavoid- 
able, but that any honest man was welcome to look at 
the original letters. As you say, it will indeed be a 
record. 

Thank you for all this, dear Jack, but do not let me 
interfere with your distribution of copies. Would it 
be proper for you, as my friend, to inform the Govern- 
ment that powers should be sent to the Commissioners 
to pay all expenses ; and further, that I have no means 
of moving from place to place, unless a steamer, a 
vessel of war, or a hired merchant-ship, with suitable 
accommodation, be placed at my disposal ? I will not 
add anything further to this voluminous letter, excepting 
my ardent wishes that you may be all well, and as 
happy as the world can make you. I enjoy myself 

n3 



274 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 

amazingly. I shall write Lord by this mail, and to 

Mr. Drummond likewise. My kindest regards and loves 
to your family circle and to our old friends, and ever 

Yours affectionately, 

J. Brooke. 



No. 186. 
John C. Temfler, Esq. 

September 27, 1853. 

Mt dear Jack, 

I HAD just finished my long letter, when yours 
of the 8tb of August, containing the Instructions, and 
other papers, arrived. Your paper is all that it could 
be ; but should you not have sent it in, there is a mis- 
take. The flag was a commercial flag, meant to be 
applied as a commercial distinction, in all the other 
rivers of the coast, as well as Sarawak : but who ever 
heard of a flag being allowed for any purpose to be 
displayed over a private grant of land ; or, in other 
words, a private property ! If Sarawak be a private 
property, I am rich, indeed ! How many slaves I 
have I how many serfs I But it is nonsense. 

I shall meet the commission, with the fiill view 
and intention of making the inquiry searching and 
complete ; but it must be just, and, to make it just, I 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 275 

must except to the InstructioDs. I particularly insist 
upon having the charges defined before the Commis- 
sion begins, and having my accusers face to face. You 
will see that, having access to the public correspon- 
dence, my information is more complete as to what the 
former Government actually did; and the proof of 
their tacit acknowledgment of my public position is 

fully shown. 

# # * # * 

I met all the people collected (as I told you) on 
Saturday. I read them the documents from Brune; 
told them of the commission, the objects of the 
inquiry, &c. ; and we had a good deal of discussion on 
the subject. The Datu Patingi said, the white men in 
England must be fools, and were giving themselves a 
great deal of trouble about nothing. They all agreed 
that they were a free people ; and old Datu Tuman- 
gong declared they would fight any one who doubted 
it. I have written to Mr. Cameron for several papers 
which I wish. I send you likewise an extract of a note 
from Lord , which may be useful, and the corre- 
spondence about the Sarawak flag, whence it appears 
that you are right after all, as it is very strong indeed. 



276 PRIVATE LETTERS OF 



No. 187. 
John C. Templer, Esq. 

' Sarawak, September 28, 1853. 

My DEAR Jack, 

I WRITE a very few lines vid Marseilles, to say 
that all is right and well here, and in Brune, and that 
you will receive a large packet vid Southampton. 

Directly I get rid of this mail, I shall turn my 
attention, as far as I can, to the detail of the com- 
mission. I shall, on being invited, proceed to Singa- 
pore, arrange what expenses the commission is to incur, 
and how it is to be discharged ; the question of 
interpreters: for, as the evidence will be in many 
dialects, unknown excepting in this place, some 
interpreters must be paid, and paid liberally. Then 
comes the protest — then the first charge — and I hold 
it as a maxim, that any accusation brought against 
me by individuals, must be on matters relative to 
themselves — ^whilst Mr. Hume or the Government, one 

or both, are to support the charges of a public nature. 

# * * * * 

Vale. Love to all. I trust dear Dora felt no ill- 
effects from her fall. 

Ever your friend, 

J. Brooke. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.O.R 277 

Thus concludes this eventful history to the present 
time — and what Englishman can read the story, and 
not feel proud that Sir James Brooke is his country- 
man. With what noble energy and resolution, did he 
oppose himself to the clamcfur which was raised against 
him, upon the ostensible ground, that the Serebas and 
Sakarrans were not pirates — ^meeting statement with 
statement — argument with argument — until the point 
was abandoned by his adversaries, and (assuming him to 
have seen and approved the Government instructions *) 
at last even by Mr. Hume himself The prosecu- 
tion of such a Company — ^as the Eastern Archipelago 
Company through the acts of its Directors was proved 
in a court of justicef to have been — was due alone to his 
hardy and resolute love of truth and justice — " Right 
was in the scale against wrong — and Old England was 

Old England still." Who can read his letters^ 

to Mr. Wise, without being touched with the unselfish 
spirit of consideration towards an erring servant, which 
breathes through every line, explaining and refuting at 
a glance, his so-called " mercantile speculations ? " 
— Who but must reverence the strong sense of public 
duty, which, at every personal sacrifice, induced him 
to vindicate, § against the authorities at Singapore, the 
first: principle, that truthfulness and character are the 
qualifications for office ? 

* See antcy p. 233. f See antCy p. 175. 

X See vol. ii. p. 185. § See ante, p. 72. 



278 PBIVATK LETTERS OF 

His endeavour* to trace home the libels of the 
" Straits Times," which led to the inquiry on Dr. 
Miller, was the only course open to an honourable and 
upright mind, determined to sift and meet erery accu- 
sation against him. His judgment in the case of 

the Lieut.-goYemor of Labuan was approved after a 
long and careftil consideration, and confirmed by a strong 
judgment of the department of the Government to which 

it was referred, "f" In his construction of the 

sultan's^ grant of the right to work coal, on the mainland 
of Borneo Uhe subject of a long and adverse correspond- 
ence with the Colonial OflSce), he is supported by high, 
perhaps the highest, legal opinions at the bar, taken 
after that correspondence had closed — and lastly, was 
he not justified in resisting an inquiry, which, when quite 
willing to submit to it, he was again and again assured 
by the House of Commons, and the voice of his coun- 
trymen, was unreasonably called for, that no grounds had 
been shown for it, and that it was manifestly intended, 
by those who demanded it, as a mark only of censure 
and disgrace? These have been and are the salient points 
of the clamour, mixed up with an afiected consideration 
for the rights of the inhabitants of Borneo— inhabitants 
who along a coast line of five hundred miles, hail 
him as their deliverer from a system of piracy, rapine, 

* See ante, p. 25. 

t See Parliamentary Papers, entitled Mr. William Napier, 
8th August, 1851, p. 73. I See ante, p. 114. 



SIR JAMES BROOKE, E.C.B. 279 

and bloodshed, and bless him as the instrument of 
that security and good government they had never 
known before. Such is the view of Sir James Brockets 
friends — such the opinions of men, who have known 
him long and intimately, and bear witness to the 
purity and goodness of his life and manners — of men, 
who feel that devotion towards him which true great- 
ness alone can inspire : and if their homage be not un- 
worthy, their testimony no light one, where is this com- 
mission of inquiry ? Are the Directors of the Eastern 
Archipelago Company in a position to prosecute? 
The judgments from the Bench are an answer there. 
Is Mr. Hume to be the accuser ? He must himself 
submit to a cross-examination. Is it then to be in- 
trusted to the hands of Mr. Napier, and Mr. Woods, 
at Singapore ; or is the Government itself to back the 
indictment, to satisfy the doubts of Mr. Sidney Herbert ? 
Ho\frever this may be, the inquiry will soon have 
passed away, and with it all the heat and animosity 
to which it has given rise — not soon, however, 
will pass away the fame of that man, who first 
conceived* the idea of opening the vast island of 
Borneo to the enterprise of his countrymen, and who 
executed his resolution amid numberless privations 
and trials, with a moderation, ability, and justice, 
which has conferred happiness on thousands of his 
* See Vol. i. pp. 2 to 83. 



280 PRIVATE LETTERS OF SIR JAMES BROOKE, K.C.B. 

fellow-men, and, if his measures and policy be carried 
out after him, will continue to confer it on thousands 
yet to come. Posterity will doubtless wonder at the 
treatment he received at the hands of some of his 
countrymen, for while our literature remains, these his 
letters will remain, and teach the moral, that, however 
beset with difficulties and dangers, high and worthy 
ends may be accomplished, and a great reputation 
achieved, without submitting to one false expedient, 
or sinking one principle of truth and honour. 

For himself, the Editor may be permitted to say, that 
the first pleasure with which he received and read the 
letters, has been again and again revived in the execu- 
tion of the work; and what he wished is done — to 
show a genuine English character in his own native 
colours, and to leave it with confidence to the judgment 
of his country. 

" This let the world, that knows not how to spare, 
Yet rarely blames unjustly, now declare." 



281 



APPENDIX No. 1. 



An Explanation and Exposure of the Charges 
made against Sir James Brooke, with reference to 
the Capture and Execution of Criminals in 
Sarawak. 

An attempt has been made to place a forced construc- 
tion on the passages in Sir James Brooke's Journal, 
which relate to the deaths of the Pangaran Budrudeen 
with two of his followers, and of the two Dyak Chiefs, 
Pa-Rimban and Pa-Tummo; and a charge has been 

publicly made against Sir James Brooke, that, " they see " Ex- 
aminer," of 
were executed by him without triaL and on his own mere J"?« 11*^ 

•^ ' and 28th, 

motion^ The following statement of facts, filling up ^®^^' 
the brief outline of the Journal, will refute these un- 
founded charges, and place the real merits of the case 
before the public. 

On the 24th of September, 1841, Sir James Brooke 
was declared Rajah of Sarawak. On the 3rd of 
November he wrote as follows, " I have a country, but 



282 APPENDIX. 

oh! how beset with difficulties, how ravaged by war, 
torn by dissensions, and mined by duplicity, weakness, 
Keppei, vol. and intriffue." 

i. p. 861. ® 

On the 5th November a Court of Justice was opened 

on a simple plan for the substantial redress of wrongs. 

KeppeUvoi. On the 10th January 1842, a brief code of laws or re- 

L p. 856 and "^ 

^''- gulations was published, the first article of which was as 

follows : — 

'' That murder, robbery, aud other heinous crimes 
will be punished according to the Ondong Ondong (the 
native laws then in force), and no person committing 
such offences will escape, if afler /atr trial he be proved 

Keppei, vol. guilty." And concludes thus : — 

'* ^ " 8th. — The Governor issues these commands, and will 

enforce obedience to them, and whilst he gives all pro- 
tection and assistance to the persons who act rightly, he 
will not &il to punish those who seek to disturb the 
public peace or commit crimes, and he warns all such 
persons to seek their safety, and find some other country^ 
where they may be permitted to break the laws of God 

Keppei, vol. and man. 

The entire Journal will prove that great firmness was 
necessary to establish a government, and to administer 
justice. '^ It was enough (remarked Sir James Brooke) 
that a follower of the rajah was concerned to hush up 
all wrongs ;" and he adds, that, '^ equal justice is the 
groundwork of society, aud unless it can be administered, 
there can be no hope of ultimate improvement. The 
country may have bad laws, but such laws as it has, 



APPENDIX. 283 

must foe enforced gently and mildly as may be towards 
the saperiors, but strictly towards the gailty, and all 
crimes coming under my cognizance must meet with 
their punishment." • ^^p^J^^* 

These extracts from Captain KeppePs work are pre- 
liminary to the two cases ; the first, that of the Pangeran 
Budrudeen and his two followers, and the second, that 
of the two Dyak chiefs, Pa-Rimban and Pa-Tummo, 
and a most cursory reference to that work will further 
show, — 

That the country was disorganized and distracted, and 
that a firm and equal administration of justice was 
necessary, though difficult and dangerous. 

That the native laws were in operation against 
" murder, robbery, and other heinous crimes," and 

That a court of justice had been opened, that wit- 
nesses were heard, and that the native rajahs assisted 
Sir James Brooke in administering justice. l p^?.^* 

These principles are plainly set forth in the Journal, 
and it is rather a violent assumption to infer, from the 
incidental mention of judicial cases subsequently made 
in the Journal, that they were departed from. 

The first case, that of the Pangeran Budrudeen, is 
mentioned in Captain Eeppel's work ; but the chase, 
capture, and execution of the criminals, as they stood in 
. the original Journal, were suppressed in the manner 
hereafter mentioned, and were subsequently published 
in full in the work of Captain Mundy. On the 28th 
April, 1842, or six months after his taking charge of 



284 APPENDIX. 

the government, Sir James Brooke wrote as follows : — 
'^ The other cause of uneasiness is the attack of a Chinese 
boat at the mouth of the river. The boat that attacked 
her is a small one, with eight or ten men, which came 
out of Sadong, and had been lying here (Sarawak) for 
a week or more. She is commanded by a Pangeran 
named Budrudeen, has some Illanuns on board, and is 
bound on a piratical cruise. As she descended the river, 
she met with the small China boat likewise, from 
Sambas, with eight men, which she treacherously 
assailed, desperately wounding one man and severely 
another — ^but the China boat's consort heaving in sight, 
the pirate pulled away. I must redress this if in my 
power." Sir James Brooke adds, that he thought one 
of these Chinese ^^must die " (as in fact he did shortly 
afterwards), and that the other was " very severely, and 

Keppei, VOL perhaps, without medical attendance, mortally hurt.'* 
This was the crime committed, and thus far, but no 
farther, we read in Captain KeppeFs work. 

Captain Mundy's work gives an account of the sub- 
sequent events relating to this heinous crime. '^ At Siru 
the pirates were found on the 5th of May, when the Ij^la- 
gindano lUanun lashed himself to desperation, flourishing 
his spear in one hand, and the other on the handle of 
his sword, he defied those collected about him; he 
danced his war dance on the sand — his face became 
deadly pale — his wild eyes glared — he was ready to 
amok — to die— but not to die alone." 

Mundy, vol. « To catch him was impossible." He was killed 

i, p. 809. ^ 



APPENDIX. 285 

openly, and madly defying authority, and ready to run 
a muek had an attempt been made to seize him. If 
there is to be any government, it will probably be con- 
ceded that a criminal cannot be allowed to escape, be- 
cause he is desperate enough to resist to the last extre- 
mity. To catch him was impossible, and it was better 
to prevent a muck, than to wait till the lives of the 
innocent were sacrificed to the fury of a desperado. 

The same course would have been pursued, whether 
in Java or Singapore, and those who know what a 
Malay muck is^ can best appreciate the necessity of 
preventing it. The Pangeran Budrudeen, and his 
brother-in-law, were at the same time made prisoners 
under a ^^ guarantee " that they sl^ould be taken to 
Sarawak, they, no doubt, hoping that their influence 
there would be sufficient to procure their release — for it 
must be remembered, that the Pangeran Budrudeen was 
noble by birth, a distant connexion of the Royal Fanuly, 
and with many influential relatives. To execute such a 
criminal, for being guilty of ordinary murder and 
piracy, was almost unprecedented. Sir James Brooke's 
Journal best explains this, when he writes that—" To a 
people, who, if they know what justice is, have never 
obeyed its dictates, its impartial administration in the 
mildest manner, is a high ofience; and amongst the Unndj^voU 

i. p. 811. 
Pangeransj each desires to claim an exemption for him^ 

self and his follower s^ and takes little concern about the 

rest. At all hazards, however, I am resolved to enforce 

justice, and td protect property, and, whatever the re- 



286 APPENDIX. 

suits may be, to leave them in God's hands." What- 
ever their expectation may have been, the condition was 
fulfilled, and to Sarawak they were taken. And on the 
8th of May Sir James Brooke mentions — ^' that Muda 
Hassim, having been informed of the circumstances, 
consented to the execution of the pirates," in other 
words, that Muda Hassim was willing that the law 
should take its course, even i^inst these noble persons, 
should they, after trial, be found guilty. They arrived 
at Sarawak at nine o'clock on the morning of the 9th of 
May, and they were tried by the Eajah Muda Hassim 
himself, at eleven o'clock, and found guilty upon the 
clearest evidence, and at about one o'clock they were 
executed. Sir James Brooke did not sit upon their 
trial, having taken so active a part in their pursuit and 
capture (for it may be mentioned that he had been ab- 
sent from Sarawak eight days and eight nights in chase 
of them). 

They were judged by their native prince, and the 
blood connexion of one of them; their relatives were 
present at the trial, and consented to their death. The 
evidence against them was conclusive : the Chinese in 
the boat attacked, knew them; several of their own 
boat's crew admitted the fact, and the Pangeran Budru- 
deen himself never attempted to deny it ; his last words 
Mundy, Toi. being — '* What !. am I to be put to death for only killing 
sff" "* the Chinese?" Had they been able to urge any reason- 
able plea in self-defence, or even to raise the slightest 
doubt of their guilt, Muda Hassim, whose feelings were 



APPENDIX. 287 

enlisted to spore them, would never have coDdemned 
them, nor would their relatives have consented to their 
execution. On the morning of the 9th of May, Sir 
James Brooke conferred with Muda Hassim, who de- 
clined Sir James Brooke's suggestion, that '^ the example 
of the Pangeran would suffice for- the ends of justice," 
and was resolute that justice should take its course on 
both the criminab. The trial is not mentioned in the 
Journal, for there really could be no reason for mention- 
ing it, and the incidental omission furnishes no ground 
for the forced assumption, that it did not take place. 
" That they deserved death,** writes Sir James, '* none 
can doubt ;" and no candid person can doubt their guilt, 
or the stern necessity of establishing the administration 
of justice over the rich and great, as well as over the 
poor and lowly. 

Can it in common fairness be said, that the Pangeran 
Bttdrudeen and his followers were executed by Sir 
James Brooke, ^^ without trial, and on his own mere 
motion?" 

The second case, that of the two Dyak chiefe, Pa- 
Bimban. and Pa-Tummo, was as follows. Sir James 
Brooke's government had positively forbidden the Dyak 
tribes within the territory of Sarawak, to war one upon 
the other. This new law was publicly promulgated ac- 
cording to the Dyak customs, and was absolutely neces- 
sary to establish security, and to end the barbarous 
custom of taking heads, to which the Dyaks were ad- 
dicted. There was some danger in promulgating such 



288 APPENDIX. 

a law, but there can hardly be a question either of its 
propriety or humanity. Fa-Rimban and Pa-Tummo 
were the head men (or Orang Kayas) of Sing^, a 
Sarawak tribe of Dyaks ; their appointment was made 
by the Datus, the local Malay rulers of Sarawak, by 
whom they were removable at pleasure, and in every 
respect they were as much subjects of the Sarawak 
government as the Lords-Lieutenant of Counties are 
subjects of England. 

Both these chiefs had direct notice of the recent law, 
and not only disobeyed it, but committed a heinous 
crime against Dyak customs, by treacherously murder- 
ing some of the Sigo tribe, living within the territory of 
Sarawak, with whom the Singe were at peace. Upon 
this Sir James Brooke went up to the tribe (a day's 
journey from Sarawak), and called together a number 
of their chiefs, who *' all" disapproved of this murder 
most highly, asserting that the Sigos were '' their 
younger brothers ;" and upon being asked if they were 
willing to force Pa-Rimban to purchase peace, they re- 
Keppei, ToL plied that they were willing to do so. 

i. p. 801. 

This occurred in June, 1842, and Pa-Rimban insist- 
ing that they had not attacked the Sigo, but that the 
heads belonged to the Sim poke tribe (not a Sarawak 
tribe), with whom he alleged they were at war ; and 
there being a difficulty at that time of getting clear 
proof of the fact, the case against them was suspended 
K6ppei„ wi. for the time; new chiefs, or Orang-Kayas, were appointed 

i. p. SOS. 

in their places ; and in Captain Keppel's book, the ac- 



APPENDIX. 289 

count of Pa-Rimban and Pa-Tummo abruptly closes 
here, and nothing further is heard of them. The sequel, 
, however, is contained in Captain Mundy's book, and 
shows that Sir James Brooke was called away to Borneo, 
and did not return to Sarawak until September, 1842; 
and finding on his return that these chiefs, Pa-Rimban 
and Pa-Tummo, had been the cause of fresh disturbances 
in his absence, and that they openly refused obedience, 
defied his authority, and declined holding an interview 
even with the Datus ; that they asserted, moreover, that 
they had killed the Sampro (another tribe of Sarawak 
Dyaks), and other Dyaks, because they were enemies, 
and that they would kill more of them," — Sir James Mundy, wl 
Brooke proceeded to take the measures against them '' ^' 
which are there detailed. 

Pa-Rimban and Pa-Tummo were made prisoners, and 
Sir James Brooke told them he would not kill them, 
but take them to the rajah (that is to the Rajah Muda 
Hassim), and they would then know what were the 
rajah's orders ; this condition was observed, they were 
brought to the rajah, they were tried in public by him 
and his brothers. The charge against them was — that 
they had killed " their younger brothers," the Dyaks of 
Sigo, a Sarawak tribe — that they had been, according to 
the mildest form of Dyak custom, called upon to pur- 
chase peace ; instead of doing which, in open defiance of 
a recent law (which every lover of humanity must ap- 
prove), they had added to their crime by killing some 
Sampro and other Sarawak Dyaks, and *^ threatened to 

VOL. m. . • 



290 APPENDIX. 

kill more of thein." For this they were tried by Muda 

Hassim, their native prince, the uncle of the sultan, one 

of the four great hereditary nobles of Brune, himself a 

claimant to the throne, which his father had possessed, 

s«e " &- and who was not " an ear-governor," but standing in the 

June «8th, position of a lord paramount, and possessing the power 

of life and dea^ throughout the Borneo territories. Sir 

James Brooke, in 1841, wrote, that without the un- 

Letter to , doubtcd and spontaneous support of this prince, he was 

Janes 

Ga^nar.Esq. jjy no mcaus cagcT to Undertake the government ; and 
this support he received from Muda Hassim, in serious 
judicial cases, before his own power was established. 

Sir James Brooke left the trial of Pa-Rimban and Ba- 
Tummo to their native princes, because, as in the case 
of the Pangeran Budrudeen, he had been an active party 
in their capture. No doubt he felt reluctance at the 
idea of their execution, but he would not interfere with 
it, as he entirely concurred in its justice, and he was 
assured of the necessity of the step, for the safety of 

Mundy.voi. many other lives. Had mercy been extended to them, 
the suppression of that barbarous custom of head-hunting 
could not have been effected ; the Sigo and other tribes 
must have been allowed the right of retaliation, and the 
country would have been distracted once more with the 
feuds of the Dyak tribes, and all the insecurity and 
bloodshed which resulted from them. 

As in the former case, the circumstance of their trial 
is not mentioned in the Journal, simply because it was 
a matter of course, and in a narrative in which the prin- 



APPENDIX. 291 

cipal events themselves are so cursorily and unconnect- 
edly entered, it is a forced and uncandid assumption, 
that the omission to mention it should be taken as a 
proof that it did not take place. 

" Sept. 7th. — ^At six o'clock in the evening, as the 
sun set, Pa-Rimban and Pa-Tummo closed their earthly 
career. They were taken out to the reajr of my house, 
and dispa^ed by the knives of the rajah's followers." 

Such is the entry in the Journal ; or, in other words, 
they were executed in the usual manner, with the krais 
or knife, by the rajah's followers, in the jungle be- 
hind the Eajah Muda Hassim's house (for his house and 
Sir James Brooke's stood together). The result, then, 
of the whole case is, that they were charged with the 
crime of murder, were tried by their native princes, 
were condemned upon the most conclusive evidence, and 
were executed according to the custom of their country. 
Sir James Brooke remarks, ^' that the necessity was a 
stem one, and their death merited." 

It must be remembered that Sir James Brooke himself 
gave both these cases to the world; that they were 
published as parts of a rough journal, the entries in 
which were often noted down in great haste, and amidst 
numberless distractions ; and that they were read with- 
out producing a suspicion on the minds of the numerous 
critics who reviewed Captain Mundy's work. 

It has now been shown, that a false construction has 
been forced upon the passages which narrate the events 
above detailed, and to complete the case, it only re- 

2 



292 APPENDIX. 

mains to exhibit Aotr, and by whom this has been 
done. 

Sir James Brooke gave his Journal to Captain Keppel 
for publication ; and the narrative of the cases of the 
Pangeran Budrudeen and his two followers, and of Pa- 
Rimban and Pa-Tummo, was, at first, printed exactly 
as they stood iq the original manuscript. A Mr. Wise 
was Sir James Brooke's agent at this time, and having 
just returned from Sarawak, he objected to the publica- 
tion of the first volume in the form in which it had 
been printed, and represented to Sir James Brooke's 
relatives and friends the injury it would do him in its 
then shape, on account of the free expression of Sir 
James Brooke's political opinions. This was the only 
reason he assigned to them, and, after much solicitation, 
he succeeded in inducing Captain Keppel to suppress 
the first volume as it was originally printed. Mr. Wise 
then managed to get the arrangement of the work into 
his own hands, and brought it out in its present form ; 
having suppressed the conclusion of the narratives in 
question without his saying a single syllable of the 
objection, he afterwards thought fit to make, either ta 
Sir James Brooke or to his friends. 

This will appear clearly from the following extract 
from a letter dated 24th September, 1845, written 
by Mr. Wise to Sir James Brooke on the subject, in 
which, after complaining of the interference of a gen- 
tleman whose influence with Sir James Brooke he was 
anxious to undermine, he continues : — ** Poor Keppel 



APPENDIX. 293 

has been led into a sad scrape with his book, I most 
fortunately discovered the mess in time (I hope), it will 
nevertheless cost something considerable. Volume I. 
of KeppeFs work must be suppressed ; I will look after 
the second edition, and I hope to see you prosper yet, 
in spite either of yourself or the party I allude to. 
Nothing could be handsomer than Keppel's conduct 
throughout this very untoward affidr ; his readiness to 
meet my views was in perfect keeping with the devotion 
he has ever shown to your interests. The opinions of 
Mr. Savage, and of another confidential adviser, I 
transmit, to confirm my statement of the dangers so Mr. wise, 

doubtlen, 

recently averted. hai retained 

*' copies of 

This was the language used by an agent to his em- butu/el?*^ 
ployer, whom, according to his more recent revelations, SS^"*^* 
he had discovered, from this very journal, to be a from sir j. 

B.'s reply. 

murderer. Sir James Brooke replied to this letter on 
the 4th December, 1845, in the following terms: — 

" I often laughingly said to Bethune, that I thought 
my Journal in its rude, disjointed state, would puzzle any 
son of literature, and I had great doubts whether any- 
body but myself, could lick it into shape. Keppel, 
however, thought otherwise, and intended to take the 
best literary opinion on the advisability of making it 
public, and so I gave it to him to do as he pleased with 
it. I am sorry your opinion is so strongly against the 
publication, and as you do not say anything of the 
literary defects, I conclude the extracts are injudiciously 
made. Most of the Journal is quite unfit for the 



294 APPEIJDIX. 

public, and must be devoid of interest ; but other con- 
siderable portions relating to the geography of the 
country, the different governments, and the habits and 
manners of an unknown aboriginal race, would in my 
opinion be acceptable to intelligent readers. As a 
general rule, therefore, I may say, that if the sub- 
stantial parts of my Journal have been extracted for 
publication, all is right ; but if my private views, feel- 
ings, and opinions have been selected, it must he had^ 
for it may look like a puff; Keppel will acquire the 
credit of being an interested party ; and I shall be 
made a hero and a fool. I would not for the world 
that Keppel should be hurt or vexed, because, inde- 
pendently of my esteem for him, his intention was good. 
One thing, however, is certain, that the suppression of 
the work can do us no harm, and the suppression of 
poortions that might injure our cause must do good. 
At a distance of some thousand miles this is all I can 
say, and even this will be of little consequence, and 
whatever is done will be done before my opinion 
arrives. / consider your view of the matter somewhat 
too serious, for I believe the worst penalty would be, 
to become a nine days' laughing stock. Books do not 
ruin characters or break heads, and it is quite im- 
possible before a work is published, to judge what 
impression it may make out of doors. / am very 
indifferent on the subject, but I have told you the best 
course in ray opinion, and shall therefore not be sorry 
if the work is burked, or altered, so as to bring me 



APPENDIX. 295 

forward as little as possible. The friendly critics have 
my thanks, for I am not of the irritable tribe, and have 
none of the pride of authorship.'* 

This letter speaks for itself, but it was in the course 
of arranging the first volume for publication that the 
manuscript journals, with other papers relating to the 
work, came into Mr. Wise's hands ; and amongst them, 
the copies of a private correspondence, addressed by Sir 
James Brooke to the very friend Mr. Wise complained 
of. This correspondence had been lent to Captain 
Keppel to assist him in bringing out the Journal, for 
the single purpose of verifying dates, and places, and 
by an inadvertence on Captain Keppel's part, was 
passed with the other papers into Mr. Wise's hands ; 
this correspondence Mr. Wise read, and claimed to 
retain ; but on its being peremptorily demanded, he 
returned it immediately; not until, however, he had 
secretly copied it, which he never disclosed to any one : 
nor did it come out until nearly five years afterwards, 
when extracts from these very letters were furnished 
by him to Mr. Hume, and were read by Mr. Hume in 
the House of Commons. He claimed to retain it, on 
the ground that he found in it expressions which were 
injurious to him, as inconsistent with what Sir James 
Brooke had written to him, Mr. Wise ; and he accord- 
ingly wrote Sir James Brooke on the subject, com- 
plaining that the correspondence had been handed 
about. 



296 APPEKDDL 

Sir James Brooke has no copy of his reply, but it was 
to the effect, tliat as Mr. Wise had not furnished him 
with any extracts, or informed him as to what extent 
they had been handed about, and how he came to see 
them, he could not form any judgment on the subject ; 
though at the same time, he felt sure that any such 
extracts could not by any just interpretation be con- 
sidered injurious to Mr. Wise, yet, at the same time, 
their late difference in matters of business might therein 
be mentioned. Thus the matter passed; Mr. Wise 
never alluded to it again in any way whatever, although 
he was afterwards in daily personal communication with 
Sir James Brooke, during his four months* stay in Eng- 
land in 1847, when he received a substantial act of 
kindness from him, aud although he continued his agent 
until November, 1848. Whatever annoyance, there- 
fore, he felt at the time. Sir James Brooke naturally 
considered had passed away. There can, however, be 
no doubt that from this period dates his antipathy to 
Sir James Brooke; and when Sir James, in 1846, 
declined entering on any doubtful speculations, this 
antipathy began to find expression ; for it can be proved 
by witnesses, that in 1847, whilst he was lauding Sir 
James a8 a great philanthropist, he was pri- 
vatelyj and behind his bach, maligning his character^ 
and holding him up as a tyrant and a murderer. 
The following letters will show this fact cleariy : — 



APPENDIX. 297 

Chnreh Mission House, Sarawak, 
December 16, 1850. 
My deab Sib Jambs, 

In the communication I had with Mr. Wise, 

respecting you, before I left England, he, after speaking 

of all the good he had done you by his exertions, among 

other things said, that of course he had great influence 

with you, for your reputation was completely in his 

power, as there were passages in your Journal printed 

in Captain KeppeFs book, which he had suppressed, but 

which, if given forth to the world, would make you 

appear a murderer, instead of the great philanthropist 

everybody thought you. This, even now, I remember 

distinctly was the purport of what he said, though not 

perhaps the exact words ; and I was much surprised at 

ids making such remarks to me — a perfect stranger, 

and the only object I could perceive in his doing so, 

was to make me apply to him rather than to you, in all 

matters concerning the Mission. 

The bait, however, did not take, as I was never fond 

of go-betweens, and I certainly would never have fished 

in the dirty ditch at Austin Friars, when I had always 

ready access to the pure brook at Mivart's. 

Very faithfully and affectionately yours, 

F. T. M^DOUGALL. 



03 



298 APPENDIX. 

18, North Bank, St. John's Wood, 
June 23, 1851. 
My dear Brooke, 

When I first became acquainted with Mr. Wise, 
he uniformly represented you to me, not only as a phi* 
lanthropist, and the bene&ctor of the Indian Archipeli^, 
but a truly great man. In this view of your character 
he persisted for a length of time, but afterwards changed 
suddenly, and began to say he had been deceived in 
you — that you were a very bad man— that all your 
proceedings in the Ea^t were carried on exclusively for 
your own aggrandisement — that he could supply me 
with proo& of these allegations— and that if he had not 
suppressed, or altered a portion of your ** Journal," you 
would have appeared to the world in the light of a 
murderer, which it seemed to me evident he wished me 
to believe you. I replied, that if he would put into my 
hands the proo& be spoke of, I would attack and de- 
nounce you publicly. He promised to furnish me with 
the proofs (which, of course, he never did), but said the 
time was not come for bringing the matter before the 
world. This shook my faith in his trustworthiness, 
and I began to suspect he was playing some deep game 
of his own. Of this I became fully satisfied, when, on 
your return to England in 1847, he went down to meet 
you — invited you to dine at his house — and there, in 
the presence of numerous friends, pronounced the 
warmest eulogium on your character and on all you had 
done in the Archipelago. I was shocked and disgusted 



APPENDIX. 299 

by this h3rpocrisy, and reproached him with it, as well 
as with causing your portrait, by Mr. Grant, to 
be copied, framed, and hung in his dining-room, to 
which his only answer was, that people are compelled 
sometimes to do such things by circumstances. The 
idea of my son's going out with you to Borneo had 
originated with him, but he now sought to dissuade me 
irom allowing him to accept the appointment, saying 
you were the greatest tyrant in the world, as the poor 
youth would find as soon as he was fairly in your power. 
To this I replied that if I had fifty sons, I should be 
too happy to intrust them to you. Our intercourse now 
became unpleasant, and in a few weeks after you left 
England, ceased entirely. Allow me, for my own 
satisfaction, to add, that instead of repenting of having 
placed by son under your authority, I have every 
day more and more reason to rejoice at it, and to 
express my gratitude to you for the undeviating 
kindness and generosity with which you have treated 
him. Trusting you will excuse this expression of my 
feelings, 

I am, my dear Brooke, 

Most fidthfully and gratefully yours, 

James Augustus St. John. 

It needs only to add, that Mr. Wise, in a letter ad- 
dressed to the Times newspaper, stated that he was 
ready to meet any distinct charge brought against him. 
Here is a very distinct and grave chaise, resting on the 



300 AFPENDDL 

testimony of two gentlemen unknown to each other, and 
which could, in a lesser degree, be substantiated by Mr. 
Scott, the Lieutenant-Governor of Labuan, Mr. Low, and 
Mr. Spencer St. John. 



APPENDIX No. 2. 



Rbfobt of the Pbocebdings at a Public Dinner given 
to Bjs Excellency Sib James Bbooke, K.C.6., Gover- 
nor of Labuan, and Rajah of Sarawak, at the London 
Tavern, Bishopsgate Street, on Friday, April 30, 1852. 

ADVEBTISEMENT INSEBTED IN THE NEWSPAPEBS. 

In order to mark the sense entertained by the Mercan- 
cantile and Shipping body — as well as by other members of 
the community — of the eminent services rendered by Sib 
James Bbooke to the interests of commerce and humanity, 
in his endeavours to put down the evils of Piracy in the 
Eastern Archipelago, and in his labours to advance the 
interests of Civilization in that part of the world— a Public 
Din neb will be given to that Gentleman, at the London 
Tavern, Bishopsgate Street, on Friday, the 30th April. 
RoBEBT WiOBAM Cbawfobd, Esq., in the Chair. 

STEWARDS. 



Nath. Alexander, Esq. 
John Armstrong, Esq. 
R. J. Ashton, Esq. 
John Harvey Astell, Esq. 



Charles Bayley, Esq. 

W. Bntterworth Bayley, Esq. 

Peter BeU, Esq. 

D. J. Biscboff, Esq. 



APPENDIX. 



301 



H. D. Blyth, Esq. 
James Blyth, Esq. 
Robert Bradford, Esq. 
James Brand, Esq. 
Rev. C. D. Brereton. 
Robert Brooks, Esq. 
Alex. Stewart Brown, Esq. 
C. D. Bruce, Esq. 
W. Buchanan, Esq. Glasgow. 

C. J. Bunyon, Esq. 
J. C. Cameron, Esq. 
Cha. Camie, Esq. • 
Robert Carter, Esq. 
John Cattley, Esq. 
Philip Cazenove, Esq. 

D. Barclay Chapman, Esq. 
Right Hon. R. A. Christopher, 

Esq., M.P. 
Matthew Clark, Esq. 
Alex. Colvin, Esq. 
James Cook, Esq. 
R. W. Crawford, Esq. 
J. J. Cummins, Esq. 
Henry Drummond, Esq., M.P. 
Edward Edwards, Esq. 
The Right Hon. the Earl of 

Ellesmere. 
John Lettsom Elliot, Esq. 
William Fanning, Esq. 
Alderman Finnis. 
P. W. Flower, Esq. 
J. G. Frith, Esq. 
J. P. Gassiot, Esq. 
Eillis James Gilman, Esq. 
John Gilmore, Esq. 
Baron de Goldsmid. 
B. B. Greene, Esq. 
Samuel Gregson, Esq. 
Archd. Hamilton, Esq. 
Wm. Hamilton, Esq., Glasgow. 
Wm. Parker Hammond, Esq. 
Thomson Hankey, Jun., Esq. 



William Harrison, Esq. 
John Harvey, Esq. 
Thomas Haviside, Esq. 
Captain Dalrymple Hay. 
T. E. Headlam, Esq., M.P. 
Robert Henderson, Esq. 
George Herring, Esq. 
Robert Hichens, Esq. 
Henry Holroyd, Esq. 
J. G. Hubbard, Esq. 
John Hudson, Esq. 
Robert Ibetson, Esq. 
Frederick Janvrin, Esq. 
Sir Richard Jenkins. 
Horatio Kemble, Esq. 
Stephen Kennard, Esq. 
William King, Esq. 
James Levick, Esq. 
W. S. Lindsay, Esq. 
Stillingfleet Locker, Esq. 
Lt.-General Sir J. Law Lushing- 

ton. 
Robert M*Ewan, Esq. 
K. R. Mackenzie, Esq. 
Charles Marryat, Esq. 
George Marshall, Esq. 
George May, Esq. 
George Meek, Esq. 
Charles Mills, Esq. 
T. A. Mitchell, Esq., M.P. 
George Henry Money, Esq. 
C. N. Newdegate, Esq., M.P. 
J. D. Nicol, Esq. 
Wm. Law Ogilby, Esq. 
Thomas Olverson, Esq. 
J. Horsley Palmer, Esq. 
W. H. Plowden, Esq., M.P. 
J. D. Powles, Esq. 
H. T. Prinsep, Esq. 
Henry Ranking, Esq. 
Arthur Rasch, Esq. 
C. R. Read, Esq. 



302 



APPENDIX. 



G. C. Redman, Esq. 
J. R. Reeves, Esq. 
Stephen Reggio, Esq. 
Edward Rigby, Esq., M J>. 
T. C. Robertson, Esq. 
W. G. Romaine, Esq. 
Chas. Morris Roopel, Esq. 
H. W. Schneider, Esq. 
William Scott, Esq. 
Thomas Sheppard, Esq. 
Alexander Sim, Esq. 
Joseph Somes, Esq. 
Rev. T. F. Stooks. 
E. P. Stringer, Esq. 
Charles Stewart, Esq. 
J. C. Templer, Esq. 
H. H. Thomas, Esq. 
James Thompson^ Esq. 



W. James Thcmipson, Jul, Eeq. 
Richard Thornton, Esq. 
Thomas Thornton, Esq. 
J. J. Travers, Esq. 
Charles Trueman, Esq. 
Richard Twining, Esq. 
G. D. Tyser, Esq. 
W. T. Wallace, Esq. 
Andrew Walls, Esq. 
Joshua Walker, Esq. 
Wm. Thornton West, Esq. 
James Weston, Esq. « 
John Wild, Esq. 
Henry Wilson, Esq. 
Henry W. Windsor, Esq. 
John Young, Esq. 
Edward J. P. Zohrab, Esq. 



Tickets, £2. 2s. each, may be had by applying to the 
Committee for conducting the Dinner, at the London 
Tavern. 



LIST OF THE COMPANY PRESENT. 



Robert Wigram, Crawford^ Esq., 
Chairman. 

Admiral Sir Charles Adam,K.CJB. 

The Hon. Baron Alderson. 

Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Coch- 
rane, K.C.B. 

Henry Drunmiond, Esq., M.P. 

Vice-Admiral Sir James Gordon, 
K..C.B. 

Thomas Emerson Headlam, Esq., 
M.P. 

Lieut.-General Sir James Law 
Lushington, G.C.B., Director 
of the East India Company. 

William H. C. Plowden, Esq., 
M.P., Director of the East 
India Company. 



Rear -Admiral Renton Sharpe, 
C.B. 

John Harvey Astell, Esq., Direc- 
tor of the East India Company. 

William Butterworth Bayley, 
Esq., Director of the Eaat 
India Company. 

John Cattley, Esq., Chairman of 
the London Dock Company. 

Thomson Hankey, Jun., Esq., 
Governor of the Bank of Eng- 
land. 

J. G. Hubbard, Esq., Deputy- 
Governor of the Bank of Eng- 
land. 

Sir Richd. Jenkins, G.C.B.,Direo- 
tor of the East India Company. 



APPENDIX. 



303 



Charles Mills, Esq., Director of 
the East India Company. 

Henry Thoby Prinsep, Esq., Di- 
rector of the E. I. Company. 

James Weston, Esq., Prime 
Warden of the Fishmongers* 
Company. 

William Adam, Esq. 

Packenham Alderson, Esq. 

Nathaniel Alexander, Esq. 

Nath. C. Alexander, Esq. 

Robert A^xander, Esq. 

William Anderson, Esq. 

Rev. Dr. Archer. 

John Armstrong, Esq. 

J. Amould, Esq. 

R. J. Ashton, Esq. 

H. Astell, Esq. 

R. N. Bacon, Esq. 

E. Barber, Esq. 

Peter Bell, Esq. 

Alexander Bellamy, Esq. 

D. J. Bischoff, Esq. 

James Blyth, Esq. 

H. D. Blyth, Esq. 

W. H. Bowen, Esq. 

Robert Bradford, Esq. 

James Brand, Esq. 

Rev. C. Brereton, M.A. 

Rev. C. D. Brereton, MA. 

Robert Brooks, Esq. 

Rev. J. Browell, M.A. 

W. H. Brown, Esq. 

Charles Dashwood Bruce, Esq. 

Joseph Buchanan, Esq. 

Thomas Buchanan, Esq. 

C. J. Bunyon, Esq. 

John Campbell Cameron, Esq. 

James Campbell, Esq. 

Charles Camie, Esq. 

William Carr, Esq. 

Robert Carter, Esq. 



Philip Cazenove, Esq. 
Montague Chambers, Esq., Q.C. 
D. Barclay Chapman, Esq. 
C. Churchill, Esq. 
Matthew Clark, Esq. 
Gordon W. Clark, Esq. 
Thomas Collyer, Esq. 
Alex. Colvin, Esq. 
James Cook, Esq. 
W. H. Covington, Esq. 
J. H. Crawford, Esq. 
J. J. Cummins, Esq. 
S. D. Darbishire, Esq. 
N. de St. Croix, Esq. 
J. Earl, Esq. 
Edward Edwards, Esq. 
Captain B. Elder. 
J. L. Elliot, Esq. 
S. H. Ellis, Esq. 
William Fanning, Esq. 
Captain Farquhar, R.N. 
Alderman Finnis. 
J. Fitzpatrick, Esq. 
fP.W. Flower, Esq. 
Charles Freeman, Esq. 
J. G. Frith, Esq. 

A. W. Gadesden, Esq. 
C. Gassiot, Esq. 

J. P. Gassiot, Esq. 
Ellis James Gilman, Esq. 
J. Gilman, Esq. 
John Gilmore, Esq., R.N. 
Thomas^Gladstone, Esq. 
H. Goschen, Esq. 

B. B. Greene, Esq. 
Samuel Gregson, Esq. 
Archibald Hamilton, Esq. 
Wm. Parker Hammond, Esq. 
Lieut. H. B. Hankey, R.N. 
William Harrison, Esq. 
Thomas Haviside, Esq. 
Captain Dalrymple Hay, R.N. 



304 



APPENDIX. 



Robert Henderson, Esq. 

George Herring, Esq. 

Hagh Hill, Esq. 

Robert Hichens, Esq. 

H. Holroyd, Esq. 

Commander Wilmot Horton. 

John Hudson, Esq. 

Seymour HofGun, Esq. 

G. W. Hunt, Esq. 

W. Hunt, Esq. 

Robert Ibetson, Esq. 

Frederick Janvrin, Esq. 

Rev. F. C. Johnson, M*A.. 

Charles Johnson, Esq. 

William Just, Esq. 

Captain Justice, R.N. 

Horatio Kemble, Esq. 

Adam Kennard, Esq. 

Stephen Kennard, Esq. 

The Hon. Captain Keppel, R.N. 

William King, Esq. 

A. A. Knox, Esq. 

Robert Knox, Esq. 

W. Lacaita, Esq. 

J. Lethbridge, Esq. 

James Leyick, Esq. 

H. H. Lindsay, Esq. 

W. S. Lindsay, Esq. 

Stillingfleet Locker, Esq. 

H. Low, Esq. 

George Malcolm, Esq. 

Charles Marryat, Esq. 

George Marshall, Esq. 

George May, Esq. 

Lobert McEwan, Esq. 

George Meek, Esq. 

Geo. Henry Money, Esq. 

A. Nesbitt, Esq. 

William Law Ogilby, Esq. 

Thomas Oliverson, Esq. 

R. S. S. Padday, Esq. 

Edward Howley Palmer, Esq. 



J. Parkinson, Esq. 
H. PhUlips, Esq. 
Charles Pietroni, Esq. 
Rev. Charles J. Plumber. 
John Diston Powles, Esq. 
Rev. R. Cowley Powles. 
Thomas W. Powles, Esq. 
W. S. Price, Esq. 
J. V. Prior, Esq. 
G. T. Ranking, Esq. 
Henry Ranking, Esq. 
Arthur Rasch, Esq. ^ 
C. R. Read, Esq. 
G. Claveriug Redman, Esq. 
J. R. Reeves, Esq. 
Stephen Reggio, Esq. 
Edward Rigby, Esq., MJ). 
T. C. Robertson, Esq. 
W. G. Romaine, Esq. 
Dr. Roots. 
C. M. Roupell, Esq. 

B. R. Saunders, Esq. 
Robert Saunders, Esq 

Henry William Schneider, Esq. 
William Scott, Esq. 
Captain Selby. 

C. J- Selwyn, Esq. 
Charles Sheppard, Esq. 
Captain Shugrha. 

G. A. Shuttleworth, Esq. 
Alexander Sim, Esq. 
Joseph Somes, Esq. 
John Stanley, Esq. 
Horace St. John, Esq. 
J. A. St. John, Esq. 
Rev. T. F. Stocks, M.A. 
E. P. Stringer, Esq. 
Charles Stuart, Esq. 
G. D. 0. K. Templer, Esq. 
J. C. Templer, Esq. 
H. H. Thomas, Esq. 
James Thompson, Esq. 



APPENDIX. 305 



W. J. Thompson, Jun., Esq. 
James Thome, Esq. 
Richard Thornton, Esq. 
Thomas Thornton, E^q. , 
Rev. Joseph Tombs, M Jl. 
J. J. Travers, Esq. 
W. Trixford, Esq. 
Charles Trueman, Esq. 
Richard Twining, Esq. 
G. D. Tyser, Esq. 



Joshna Walker, Esq. 
W. T. Wallace, Esq. 
Andrew Walls, Esq. 
William Thornton West, Esq. 
John Wild, Esq. 
Hiram Williams, Esq. 
Henry Wilson, Esq. 
H. W. Windsor, Esq. 
John Young, Esq. 
E. J. Zohrab, Esq. 



Visconnt Palmerston, and many other Members of Parliament, 
were prevented attending in consequence of important business 
occurring in the House of Commons on the same evening. 



Dinner to Sir James Brooke, E.C.B. 

The Chairman, — Gentlemen, the toast I have first to 
propose is one which, on such occasions as the present, 
always takes precedence over every other toast, and it is 
one that needs no comment from me; it is — The health 
of Her most Gracious Majesty the Queen, with all the 
honours. 

The Chairman, — The next toast, gentlemen, is the 
proper compliment to the one that has preceded it, and 
needs, like the other, no special commendation to recom- 
mend it to your notice. I give you — The health of His 
Royal Highness Prince Albert and the rest of the Royal 
Family. 

The Chairman. — Our next toast, gentlemen, is one that 
is always well received in any company of Englishmen — 
The health of that distinguished body of our fellow- 
countrymen connected with the United Services. I think. 



306 APPENDIX. 

gentlemen, you will drink this toast with more than ordi- 
nary enthusiasm on the present occasion, when you remember 
that it was in the army that Sir James Brooke first became 
distinguished in the public service, and that it has been 
his lot still further to distinguish himself in conjunction 
with the navy. (Hear, hear.) Gentlemen, I think that 
the toast I now propose to you is one that cannot fail to 
obtain your most hearty applause ; and if any particular 
credit is to be given to those with whom Sir James Brooke 
was associated in these services, it will be better to reserve 
that acknowledgment for a special toast. Gentlemen, I 
will now give you — The Army and Navy, coupled with 
the names of two distinguished officers, which will be 
handed down with honour to posterity, — Admiral Sir 
Charles Adam, and Lieutenant-General Sir James Law 
Lushington. (Loud cheers.) 

Admiral Sir Charles Adam. — It must always be a high 
gratification to any man called upon as I am- upon the 
present occasion, to return thanks for the service to which 
I have the honour to belong ; I feel it particularly on this 
occasion, for the manner in which your Chairman has given 
the toast, and I feel that that satisfaction is enhanced very 
much because the toast is given in the City of London. 
No officer who has served in war can fail to remember that 
when any high service was performed by the navy, those 
who sufiered in the fight were always solaced by the cordial 
feeling of the City of London, who relieved the wounded 
and comforted the widow aud the orphan. (Loud cheers.) 
I trust that if it should ever happen again that this country 



APPENDIX. 307 

is called upon to engage in such a war, you would find the 
navy equal to the same exploits as those which had brought 
such honour to it hitherto, and that its services would be 
received in a similar manner by the generous City of 
London. But, gentlemen, there is another reason why I 
feel the satisfaction very much enhanced, — that we are 
met to do honour to a gallant and noble-minded person 
who is our guest this night. (Loud cheers.) I have served 
in Lidia long enough to know that piracy is a deep stain 
on that country, and that it can only be obliterated by the 
means that have been pursued by our excellent guest. It 
gives me the highest satis&ction to reflect, that whenever 
Sir James Brooke came into communication with the officers 
of the British navy, he acted most cordially with them. 
That there had been some bloodshed, I am convinced no 
one more sincerely deplores than my gallant friend. (Loud 
cheers.) From my experience, I am convinced that there 
are no means of putting an end to piracy in the Eastern 
Archipelago, than those which our friend has adopted. 
Gentlemen, in the name of my brother officers, I return 
you our best thanks for the honour you have conferred 
upon us, in drinking our healths on this interesting and 
important occasion. 

Lieutenant- General Sir James Law Lushington, — I beg, 
gentlemen, to return you my most sincere thanks for the 
honour you have conferred upon the service to which I be- 
long. I am quite sure that toast has arisen from a conviction 
that the Army has hitherto done what was needed from them. 
I rejoice that at the present moment we are at peace with 



308 APPENDIX. 

all the world, and I most heartily desire that that peace 
may long continue. I beg again to thank you, gentl^nen, 
for the kind manner in which you have received the toast 
so well proposed by the Chairman. 

The Chairman. — Gentlemen, we have now arrived at 
that period in the course of the evening when I think I 
may appropriately allude to the object for which we are 
assembled in this place. We are met for the purpose of 
manifesting, after the manner which the convivial customs 
of our age sanction, to our countrymen and to the world at 
large, the high esteem and grateful admiration with which 
we regard the services rendered by Sir James Brooke, in 
the promotion of the moral influence of his country in 
those parts of the world with which he has been connected, 
— in the extension of our commerce, — and in imparting 
the blessings of civilization to the people of those inhos- 
pitable regions wherein his lot has been cast. We are met 
here also for the purpose of conveying to him an expression 
of our sympathy in that most unmerited and calumnious 
requital — (loud and long-continued cheering) — in that 
most ungenerous requital which he has met with at the 
hands of certain parties in this country, to whom I feel it 
is doing an honour to say of them that they are his country- 
men. And we are met, further, to assure him of our 
unshaken and unabated confidence in his ability and will- 
ingness to maintain on his return to that part of the world 
the honour and glory of his country, and the high reputation 
he has already earned for himself. And, gentlemen, when 
I look around this table, — when I look through the list of 



APPENDIX. 309 

those who have assembled to do honour to our guest by 
this expression of their feeling, — ^when I see at this table 
several members of the House of Commons, (and know 
that others would have been present had they not been 
called away by the urgency of public business, and by the 
important subject this evening before the House,) — when I 
see, gentlemen, that this company is graced by a member 
of that most distinguished body and ornament of our age, 
the Bench of England, — when I see around this table not 
only members of the United Services, to whom I have 
already had occasion to allude, — when I see here many 
gentlemen charged with the direction of the affairs of that 
great corporation, — the lords paramount of the East, — I 
mean the East India Company (cheers), — to render their 
testimony to the uprightness and integrity of Sir James 
Brooke, — ^when I see here the highest executive officers of 
its great rival in station and power, the Bank of England, 
— when I see here gentlemen of every creed and caste in 
commerce and politics, met to convey to Sir James Brooke 
this manifestation of their unfailing confidence, — I may 
venture to express my hope and belief that we shall hear 
no more of those unjust imputations upon his character 
and motives, those most unworthy attacks upon his character 
and honour, which, springing from disappointed expectation 
on the part of some, and fostered by that morbid avidity 
for what I must call grievance-mongering on the part of 
others, entail infinitely more discredit upon those from 
whom they emanate than upon him to whom they wish to 
attach them. (Loud cheers.) If I deplore this exhibition 



310 APPENDIX. 

of feeling on the part of some, it is not on account of any 
stain it can attach to Sir James Brooke ; for the more he 
is attacked, the more brightly will his character shine 
after the investigation. But if there is one reason why I 
should deplore this conduct more than another, it is, that I 
feel it to be in the highest degree impolitic that the 
motives of officers, intrusted with the performance of 
arduous duties in foreign parts of the globe, should be 
brought under the critical examination of the House of 
Commons as Sir James Brooke's have been. I do not, 
of course, complain that the House of Commons should 
have the power of exercising a right discretion in investi- 
gating such matters when they are prop^ly brought under 
its notice ; but I do , complain that such opportunities 
should thus be given to men who have private interests to 
serve, and whose object is not the public good. I say, it 
is lamentable that such men should have an opportonity 
given to them of thus enlisting others in their private cause, 
and that they should command that attention on the part 
of others who have nothing to do but to hunt up imaginary 
cases of grievance and wrong. Now I believe that it 
would be quite within my province, on this occasion, but I 
do not think there is any necessity for it, to carry you 
through a long personal account of Sir James Brooke since 
he left this country in 1838 down to the present time. 
The pages of Keppel, of Mundy, and other officers who 
have served with him in his trials and his dangers, and who 
now share with him, I am proud to say, the honours which 
his countrymen, and his countrywomen too (as testified by 



APPENDIX. 311 

their presence here to-night), desire to render to him — 
those pages are open to all ; and there are few, probably, 
whom I have now the honour to address who have not 
thus made themselves acquainted with the main features of 
Sir James Brooke's extraordinary career. It is not to the 
facts connected with Sir James Brooke's career that I wish 
now particularly to allude ; — ^I would rather advert to the 
consequences which I think will spring from his great 
exertions on the inhospitable shores of Borneo to the 
commerce of this country, and to the extension of that 
moral influence which England is entitled to exercise even 
in that distant part of the world. When you contrast the 
present state of Borneo with what it was some time ago, I 
think it will be difficult to deny to Sir James Brooke the 
credit of most unfailing sagacity, of a wonderful self* 
denial, of an equally wonderful facility of adapting himself 
to the exigencies of the station in which he has been 
placed; and I think I can cite no better instance of 
the extraordinary fame wbidi his name has acquired, than 
by reading an extract Irom a note pot into my bands stoee 
I came into the room : — 

"SiK, 

** Jctt bearing dat yon are to preside at the (\wtt4gr 
to be given to him whom all boo««t toen iM'y^Ut Ut Surtttmr^ 
I ventoze to relate to yon a eirecimstance whj/;h rjec«trr#^J Up 
mysdf about two yeais sinee, whiUt mrtt^urx^ tj^ tuoKi 44 
Palawan (finun wiiieb I bare l^it a few d^^t r^rturMd;, 
which I eooeenre a fltn»g erideaee of tii^ moral iiillit«««« 



1 



312 APPENDIX. 

the proceedings of the rajah (Sir James Brooke) have 
obtained in that quarter, even beyond where he has been 
seen : — Landing on the eastern shore of Palawan, in a boat, 
with six men, in the execution of surveying duties, I was 
met by a corresponding number of Malays, armed, who, 
assuming a threatening attitude, warned me off. I told 
them we were English, and inquired what they were afraid 
of? This appeared to inspire something like confidence; 
when one of the party asked, ^ Did I know Tuan Brooke?* 
Replying in the affirmative, he exclaimed, ^ Bargoose ! Tuan 
Brooke,' or, * Very good Mr. Brooke ;' placing his arm on 
my shoulder at the same time, his confidence being fully 
confirmed. 

^^ It was my good fortune, a few months later, to meet a 
man on the same coast, named Sheriff Hassen, a native of 
Malludu, which was so notorious in 1845 as being a den of 
piracy. This man produced a paper, given him by the 
rajah, certifying to his honest character, and recom- 
mending him to any Europeans with whom he might meet. 
The certificate was dated on board H.M.S. '^ Maeander/' at 
Malludu, in 1848. 

^^ That His Excellency may long be spared as an instru- 
ment of Divine Providence for the good work he has so 
successfully commenced in the Eastern Archipelago, whose 
children already join in singing songs of gratitude to their 
benefactor, is the humble, but hearty prayer of 
** Yotir obedient Servant, 
,** C. Pasco, 

" 10 Wharton Street, Pentonville, « Lieut., R.N. 

April 30ih, 1852." 



APPENDIX. 313 

Now, gentlemen, this may seem a very trivial matter, 
bat it will show you to what extent Sir James Brooke's 
moral influence has penetrated, when these Malays threw 
down their arms and accepted as friends those whom they 
were previously disposed to massacre. (Cheers.) You 
may receive this as one out of numerous testimonials 
accessible at the present time, — ^testimonials of the influ- 
ence wliich the English nation possesses through the rightful 
exercise of the power with which Sir James Brooke has 
been invested. And I will ask you, whether it is not 
monstrous that such a career of humanity and righteous 
dealing should be cut short through the machinations of a 
disappointed few. I am disposed to attribute to those 
gentlemen, by whom the motion adverse to Sir James 
Brooke was proposed in the House of Commons last year^ 
a conscientious motive in the dischai^e of their duties, but 
I cannot go futher than that ; for I believe the whole of 
the opposition he has met with to have been originated by 
personal considerations. And, gentlemen, if further evi- 
dence were wanting of the change which has taken place in 
that part of the world under the administration of Sir 
James Brooke, it might be found in that excellent letter 
from the Bishop of Calcutta, which was read in the House 
of Commons by the honourable member for Newcastle 
(Mr. Headlam). It is impossible for any man to read that 
letter and not give full credit to the sentiments there set 
forth; and I ask you whether the measures Sir James 
Brooke has taken to pacify that country, whether the great 
and wonderful change from the barbarism existing in that 

VOL. III. P 



314 APPENDIX. 

country when he first visited it, is to be stopped by such 
proceedings as I have mentioned. We require nothing 
more, at the present time, than a strong manifestation of 
the feeling of this country, with a fidr and reasonable judg- 
ment, — not one dictated by personal feeling. Nothing 
more than this is needed to enable Sir James Brooke to 
return to that country, and to carry out the great objects 
in which he has been interested ; and I believe that in 
whatever position he may be placed there, whether as an 
independent ruler, or as her Majesty's representative and 
governor of the island of Labuan, I say it requires nothii^ 
more than a strong expression of feeling on the part of the 
British public, to ensure all that we can expect of him in 
our most sanguine moments. (Cheers.) Now, gentlemen, 
I do not wish to occupy your time, at the present moment, 
with long charges against those whom we have considered 
inimical to Sir James Brooke. We may think that they 
have taken misguided views. I allude more particularly 
to those who voted for an inquiry into Sir James Brooke's 
proceedings ; but I think it is very much to be lamented 
that such a state of things should be again allowed to occur. 
Of the individual who took the lead on that occasion, I 
would always wish to say nothing that is harsh or unplea- 
sant ; but I must say (for at the time referred to I held a 
seat in the House of Commons), that it will be to me a 
very great satis&ction to reflect upon the vote that I had 
then the opportunity of giving ; and it seems to me that if 
that gentleman has not proved that the object of his attack 
was a Yerres in his Pro-consulship, he has certainly not 



APPENDIX. 315 

acquired for himself the character of a Cicero in the prose- 
cation of his case. (Laughter and cheers.) We have met 
to-night for the purpose of exhibiting to Sir James Brooke 
our undiminished confidence in the integrity of his views, 
and in his ability to carry out the great undertaking he has 
before him ; and you will render him no stronger ajssistance 
in carrying out his purposes than by cordially accepting 
the toast I will now propose, — that of the health of Sir 
James Brooke, and long life and prosperity to him. (Loud 
and long-continued cheering.) 

Sir James Brooke, in acknowledging the toast, spoke as 
follows: — Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen,— I am deeply 
sensible of the honour which . has been conferred upon me 
at this present moment, and, if anything would have 
enhanced the pleasure I already experience, it would have 
been the manifestation of your feeling in responding to the 
toast proposed by the Chairman. I will not pretend, gen- 
tlemen, to that species of pride which apes humility ; I will 
not humble myself that you may ^xalt me. I will not say 
that I am utterly unworthy of your regard ; but I will ven- 
ture to tell you something of my own feelings and some- 
thing of the position I hold in the East. I am deeply 
sensible, gentlemen, that such an expression of opinion 
from an assembly like this, is important and valuable to 
me, not only as a token — a public testimony — of approval 
of my conduct, and my sincere desire to advance the 
interests of this country in a distant quarter of the globe, 
but it justifies the conviction — the unchangeable conviction 
— ^that I have ever entertained, that truth and justice will 

p2 



316 APPENDQL 

triumph, in the present state of society, over any outcry 
fomented in the popular mind against the character of an 
honest man. (Loud cheers.) Qendemen, your approval 
of my conduct is no light condemnation of the conduct of 
those who have sought by every means, hxr and unfair, to 
blast my reputation, even at the risk of injuring their own ; 
who, under the pretence of humanity have screened their 
injustice, and on the plea of inquiry, have been unscrupulous 
enough to charge murder. It is now but little more than 
four years since I was the idol of a spurious popularity ; it 
is more than three years that I have been the object, but 
happily not the victim, of an unprecedented persecution ; 
and it will afford me no light satisfaction, gentlemen, if 
this night a &ir and moderate estimate can be formed of 
my motives, and of my conduct Praise and blame have 
been lavished upon me with no sparing hand. I have been 
accused of every crime, from murder to merchandize. 
(Laughter.) I have been held up as a prodigy of perfec- 
tion, — and I have been cast down as a monster of iniquity. 
These, gentlemen, are the extremes which human folly 
delights in ; these are the distortions which the tribunes of 
the people represent as Bible truths to the multitude: 
these the delusions which a hackneyed politician uses 
lightly, to wound feelings he has long outlived, and to cast 
a slur upon Her Majest/s servants. The evil, gentlemen, 
I fear is inevitable ; but it is no less an evil, that public 
morals in such hands should sink, like water, to its lowest 
and ite dirtiest level ; and, Mr. Chairman, you will always 
find some sapient senator, when he has infringed upon 



APPENDIX. 317 

public principle, atid when he has trampled upon private 
feeling, — you will always find one who will tell you that it 
is his duty as a member of parliament to act as a scavenger 
to the vices of other men, or, — ^to borrow a simile from my 
friend near me, — ^to become a cesspool for every foul slander 
invented at the Antipodes or manufactured in London. 
There are principles of justice supposed to be implanted in 
the human heart, and which are certainly acknowledged by 
the virtuous of all nations. It is a principle of justice, that 
an accusation of crime shall not be disposed of by one 
competent tribunal, and again and again preferred year 
afi;er year. It is a principle of justice that suspicion is no 
proof of truth, — that ignorance is no ground of inquiry, — 
and it is a principle of justice that trivial offences shall not 
be mixed up in the category of deadly crimes. It is a 
principle of justice, that deadly crimes shall not be charged 
on light and frivolous pretences. It is a principle of jus* 
tice, that trials shall precede condemnation, and it is a 
commandment of God, as well as a principle of justice, 
that *^ Thou shalt not bear Mse witness against thy neigh- 
bour." (Loud cheers.) These, gentlemen, are the 
eternal principles upon which the foundations of society 
rest, and to violate them is to injure society ; and yet, if 
you will weigh what has passed with those principles, and 
try them by their balance, you will find that there is one 
member of the House of Commons who has not only 
abused his privilege as a member of Parliament, but who 
has made unto himself a new law. There are principles 
more important than the welfare of nations, and there are 



318 APPENDIX. 

plain rules for the guidance of mankind ; but we all know 
that men's passions and men's moral obliquity cause a 
departure from these grand truths. There is a duty which 
teaches one man to filch his neighbour's purse — ^there is a 
duty which teaches another man to steal his neighbour's 
good name ; but until this new code of morals be established, 
I shall continue to call things by their right names, — ^I 
shall call persecution, persecution; and the persecution 
which has pursued me has been as dogged and as fierce as 
though it had been caused by religious hatred ; it has over- 
leaped the barriers of testimony, defied the voice of reason, 
till honest men loathe the injustice done, and you, gentle- 
men^ have marked your sense of principles violated, and of 
feelings outraged. Had I said less, gentlemen, I should 
not have conveyed what I wbh to express. I fed that 
those principles cannot be lightly violated ; but for those 
personally who have honoured me by their suspicions, I 
wish to dismiss them from my thoughts with the charitable 
contempt I feel. There can be nothing common between 
us. A tardy conviction is due to their own character, but 
I have never mingled in the " filthy fiay," 

** Where the soul sours, and gradual rancour grows 
Embitter'd more from peevish day to day." 

But I know that there are men who love notoriety better 
than justice, and who live upon the breath of popular 
applause. I do not wish to comprehend their motives — I 
do not respect their calling, neither do I envy their fame 
or success. (Cheers.) Our tastes and our feelings assi- 
milate upon no single point, and for my part, gentlemen. 



APPENDIX. 319 

" I would rather be a kitten, and cry Mew, 
Than one of these same metre ballad-mongers." 

It has been said, gentlemen, that when I set sail for the 
shores of Borneo, now fourteen years ago, I carried a deep 
design in my bosom to suppress piracy, and to carry 
civilization to the Malayan race. This is most flattering to 
my wisdom and foresight, but unfortunately, it is not true. 
I had but , one definite object when I left England, and 
that was, to see something of the world and to come back 
again. The extraordinary events that occurred after my 
arrival in Sarawak I need not detail. I found a country 
ruined by its native princes, and which they could no 
longer govern. I had everything to do. I was a reformer 
in the most extended sense of the word ; but I recognised 
the principle, that to effect any adequate measures of reform 
you must respect vested interests, (Hear, hear.) This, I 
need hardly say, is the same in England as in Borneo. I 
had a government to support; small, it is true, but a 
government far beyond the means of the country to pay for. 
I had prohibited the native princes fix)m plunderii^ the 
unfortunate people, and the consequence was, that I had to 
pay these princes myself. Many evils existed, and for the 
first two years I had to support a starving people, and I 
had to revive the first glimmerings of trade. A system of 
usury had become common in the country, 24 per cent, 
a-month being charged for small loans. This abuse wa« 
corrected by my paying off the original sums lent* J 
mention this to illustrate what I had to do, for all these 
expenses had to be defrayed out of my own private fortune. 



320 APPENDIX. 

You will pardon me for mentioiiing these things, but you 
know that I have waited long, and that I liave been forced 
into this public mention of them. (Loud cheers.) There 
is a sad tale of stock transferred, and of securities sold, 
which would show that I have sunk more than 20,000/. in 
the support of an ini&nt government, in mitigation of the 
distresses which pressed upon the people, and in supplying 
their necessities. I wish, gentlemen, to say that I confess 
myself guilty of having bought up the produce which the 
natives brought to me for sale. I did it in order to supply 
the deficiency of the public revenue, and to check the heavy 
drains upon a limited fortune. This b the heinous crime that 
has been laid to my charge, but supported by your example, 
I shall not blush when I am impeached of having been a 
British merchant, though I am free to confess I was a very 
bungling one (laughter): on this account, because I was very 
careless, and knew little or nothing about business, — ^I 
wished to be relieved from the responsibilities and fluctua- 
tions of commerce, and I was relieved, for there were 
insolvents in London, who, being represented to me as 
great capitalists, relieved me of ten thousand pounds' worth 
of property, which I could have spent myself to much 
better purpose. I was relieved of that property long 
before I had the honour of an appointment under Her 
Majesty's government, and I should have thought that the 
outlay of no small sum compared with the means I pos- 
sessed, and an honourable poverty at present, might have 
saved me from the imputation of mercenary motives. 
(Loud cheers.) Spite of all the treasure which it has been 



APPENDIX. 821 

alleged I have heaped up, I regret to say that Sarawak 
boasts a national debt, not so large as that which the 
Chancellor of the Exchequer is explaining just now in the 
House of Commons, but still quite lai^e enough to be 
burdensome and inconvenient. But I will say, with great 
boldness, that I have refrained from imposing taxes upon a 
rude people. (Cheers.) I have resisted those who wished 
to impose taxes. I knew always that a long confidence 
must precede taxation ; and I hope still that the benefits of 
good government will in time induce the people to impose 
taxes upon themselves. I could not, from my very nature, 
be covetous enough to wring the earnings from the pea- 
sant's ^^ hard hand," though that peasant's skin was of a 
different colour from my own. (Cheers.) It was durmg 
the time that I was struggling against pecuniary difficulties, 
and difficulties of every other sort, that I first became 
acquainted with the character of the Serebas, and Sakarran 
pirates, that is, of the Malays and the Dyaks of those rivers ; 
and, after twelve years of minute experience, I may be 
supposed to be able to distinguish between piratical attacks 
and intertribal feuds — and these intertribal feuds are such 
as the wolf wages on the Iamb. Gentlemen, there has 
been much vain declamation upon this subject; but I 
should much like to ask the most peaceable man in Eng- 
land, — the man who is peaceful in words as well as in 
deeds, — the man who is peaceful by habit and peaceful by 
religious persuasion, — such a man I respect, although I 
differ from him,— but I should like to ask such a man 
what he would do if a horde of bandits frequently burst 

p3 



322 APPENDIX. 

forth from Brest or Cherbourg, ravaging the shores of the 
Channel, and carrying women and children into captivity, 
with the heads of their decapitated husbands and fathers? 
Would he not resist? Would he not defend his own 
hearth? Would he not, to save his &mily, seek those 
marauders on the high seas, or crush them in their own 
dens ? Would he preach, — and suppose those deaf adders 
would not listen — would he preach when he saw his 
daughter dishonoured, and his son murdered? and then 
would he proclaim his shame and cowardice amongst men ? 
I do not myself believe that such a man breathes in Eng- 
land, from length to length. (Cheers.) But how, gentle- 
men, does this differ from what has already occurred? 
Have not the natives of Borneo suffered, and have they not, 
when the proper time arose, in obedience to the impulse of 
self-preservation, acted in accordance with the common 
laws of nature ? The rest is leather and prunella, — soap- 
bubbles blown by our popular legislators to obtain tem- 
porary applause. The pirates were punished because they 
are the enemies of mankind. The natives of Borneo 
attacked these marauders, and they obeyed the law of 
nature. Her Majesty's forces acted in obedience to the 
law of nations ; for it is a law of nations that the powerfrd 
should protect the innocent from the guilty ; and the law 
was applied, on these occasions, as it is applied at home. 
If a smuggler evades capture, and resists the law, he is 
fired into, and shot and shell do their work. J£ a felon is 
collared by a policeman, and resists, he receives a tap on 
the head to make him quiet : and so it has been in Borneo, 



APPETOIX. 323 

— the pirates would not be quiet, and measures were taken 
to compel them to be so. When the police of this country 
can reason your criminals into virtue, the same may be 
done with the pirates, but not till then. 

Gentlemen, I had desired to seize this opportunity of 
expressing to the Noble Lord (Palmerston) who was ex- 
pected here this evening, my sincere sense of the constant 
and generous support which I have received from him and 
from her Majesty's late Ministers. I should be ungrateful, 
indeed, if I did not thank my honourable friend the mem- 
ber for West Surrey (Mr. H. Drummond). I thank him 
not in an idle form of words, but from my heart — I thank 
him for his defence of an absent man, and a stranger. 
(Cheers.) To the honourable gentleman the member for 
Newcastle (Mr. Headlam), and to many friends who are 
now present, I owe a debt of gratitude which I can never 
forget, though I can never repay. I am, indeed, a beggar 
in thid respect, gentlemen ; for I have to remind the 
gallant admiral now present, of the time he commanded on 
the coast of Borneo, when I served as a volunteer under 
his command, whilst he was carrying out a course of 
measures which may well serve as an example to other 
nations, as well as to our own. An English squadron then 
made a circuit of those seas, and the natives knew the 
power of this country. To the gallant captains (Captain 
Keppel and Captain Farquhar) with whom I have acted so 
cordially, I will only say that, should we ever hear again of 
attacks, I trust to find them near me. (Cheers.) I am a 
bankrupt, but a bankrupt proud of his obligations ; and if I 



324 AFPEITDIX. 

have suffered, — and I do not deny that I have suffered 
from the machinations of my enemies, — my sufferings have 
b^n more than balanced by the devotion of my friends, 
by your kindness, and by the justice rendered me by my 
countrymen at large, and I think I may say, by my coun* 
trywomen also. (Cheers.) 

Gentlemen, I am proud to avow that the position I hold 
in the East has enabled me to introduce social and political 
improvements amongst the natives, and this will, lead in 
the fulness of time to great commercial development. I 
am proud to say that I possess some power ; that power, 
however, has been conferred upon me by the fountain-head 
of all power, and it may be resumed whenever it is misused* 
I win respond to what the Chairman has said, by declaring 
that I do possess an influence over the native mind, and 
this influence, joined to power and knowledge, is the chief 
element of future success. But, gentlemen, this influence 
would never have arisen, had I been actuated by base 
motives of any kind ; nor could it, indeed, survive a day 
that child-like confidence which is the fruit of a long ex- 
perience. Whatever may be the course of our future policy, 
it should be worthy of a great nation, and it should not be 
dictated by the meddling parsimony which begrudges a 
small outlay to obtain great future advantages. (Cheers.) 
The countries of the Archipelago are the direst and richest 
of the world. There are resources to employ British 
enterprise — there are outlets for English commerce ; and 
it would be lamentable indeed if they were lost. We have 
something to do and some difficulties to overcome before 



APPENDIX. 325 

we clutch these advantages. There is an imbecility, which 
hopes to attain everything by doing nothing, and which 
weakens every executive power in every distant part of tjie 
empire. Borneo has not escaped this evil, but for this 
coontry she may yet preserve that commerce, and may 
develop it a hundred-fold ; but unless England is awake to 
its importance, it will be closed against her enterprise. 
Others will awake, though England may sleep. Short of 
this finn and consistent course of action, better would it be 
to withdraw from the enterprise than to continue it, and to 
attempt what you will never carry out successfully. It is 
an injury to the natives to excite &lse hopes that are never 
to be realized. There is one page in history, and the 
history of this country, which tells us of a native people in 
the Archipelago betrayed by our carelessness, and British 
interests sacrificed to ignorance. One single record is suffi- 
cient on our annals, for I am convinced that the time has 
now arrived that England must maintain her position in 
these seas. She must suppress piracy, — she must secure 
stepping-stones for her infant steam communication, which 
is to join her possessions in Australia to her possessions in 
China, — she must develope her commerce. She must do 
this, or she must abandon a glorious enterprise to another ; 
and, when that happens, I shall say, to a greater nation. 
The alternative is before us. I look forward myself with 
warm hope that the nobler alternative will be chosen ; but 
I do not conceal that I am not unprepared to meet the 
meaner one. 

Gentlemen, I will now say that your confidence, which 



326 APPENDIX. 

the Chainnan has so well expressed, will cheer me in the 
path of public duty, or will solace me in the retirement of 
private life, in the deep solitude of a Borneon existence. 
I have only now, gentlemen, to implore you, not only in 
my own name alone, but in the name of those who, like 
myself, have suffered from the licence of men's tongues, — > 
I implore you not to believe what is said of an absent man 
unless it be proved. Pause long, consider well before you 
give ear to a slander affecting a man of integrity. Do not 
disgrace your public servants by inquiries generated in the 
fogs of base suspicions ; for remember, a wrong done is like 
a wound received, — ^the scar is ineffaceable. It may be 
covered by glittering decorations, but there it remains to 
the end. The wound may be healed, and the injury may 
be repaired. Gentlemen, I have now to thank you for 
your kindness in listening to me, for the high honour you 
have done me, for the feeling of confidence you have ex- 
pressed, and for that remedy which you have applied to a 
wrong which shall be obliterated henceforth from my mind. 
(Sir James Brooke resumed his seat amidst demonstrations 
of applause which lasted several miimtes.) 

Sir James Brooke again rose, and said, — I fear I have 
been acting the part of a Pharisee, and have been as selfish 
as most men who are placed in my position ; but I have a 
pleasing duty to perform, and one that gratifies me as it 
will gratify all present. 1 beg leave to propose the health 
of our worthy Chairman, and if I may add my small tribute 
of praise to the praises of his daily life and conversation, I 
am sure you will heartily join me in it. I am proud on 



APPENDIX. 327 

this occasion of making his acquaintance, and I hope the 
acquaintance thus commenced will ripen into a warmer and 
better feeling of friendship. (Cheers.) 

The toast having been warmly responded to, 

The Chairman said, — 1 feel I should do but poor justice 
to my own feelings if I were not to thank you for the com- 
pliment you have passed upon me. I beg to thank you in 
terms of the most unaffected gratitude for that great com- 
pliment. For myself, I can only say, as the best excuse 
for occupying this seat, that I possess an interest in this 
great matter second to none in this country. As a merchant 
of the City of London, and connected with the commerce 
of the East, I feel a peculiar interest in the success of Sir 
James Brooke's proceedings, and if my conduct on thb oc- 
casion has met with your approbation, it is the best reward 
I could ask. 

The Chairman, — Gentlemen, we have been honoured 
on this occasion by the company of gentlemen whose 
presence is. always acceptable. I allude to those members 
of the Bar who have favoured us by coming amongst us 
this evening. And when I say that we have here this 
evening a member of that distinguished body, the Bench of 
England, I am sure you will drink with cordiality — The 
Bench and the Bar, and the health of Baron Alderson. 
(Loud cheers.) 

Mr. Baron Alderson, — I do not mean to return thanks 
for the Bar, nor for anything but the Bench. The Bar 
has its representatives here, and they must speak for them- 
selves. I am obliged to listen to them very often, and I 



328 APPENDIX. 

intend to do so to-night. We on the bench do the best we 
can in equally administering justice, and I think we do no 
more than equal justice when we acquit Sir James Brooke. 
It gives me very great pleasure to be here this evening. I 
ask myself this question, — -What are we here for this even- 
ing ? Why do I stand between Sir James Brooke and the 
gallant officers who have so often stood by him on other 
occasions? Why are there present so many persons of 
different professions, opinions, and ages, — ^from the old, 
whose fears exceed their hopes, to the young, whose hopes 
exceed their fears? Simply to do honour to an English 
gentleman of indomitable will, great philanthropy, great 
humanity, who has endeavoured to spread amongst a be- 
nighted people the blessings of knowledge, the advantages 
of civilization, and the blessings of religion. It is for this 
reason that we are here to-night, and I am sorry to say that 
in one respect I diifer from Sir James Brooke and the 
Chairman, in that they expressed something of regret that 
our distinguished guest had not the approbation of all man- 
kind. I do not think Sir James Brooke would deserve it 
if he had it ; for I have always observed, — and I believe 
history will confirm me, — ^that the greatest bene&ctors of 
the human race have been most abused in their own time, 
and I therefore think that Sir James Brooke ought to be 
congratulated because he is abused. I look to the future and 
not to the present, because I look to the time when he will 
come out as the sun from behind the clouds. When this 
takes place, his calumniators and detractors will be obscured 
in the oblivion of their own insignificance. Then will 



APPENDIX. S29 

come the time when injustice will be done him. I cannot 
hold out any hope to him that this will occur in his life- 
time or mine. I cannot promise to him universal appro- 
bation, because that does not generally accompany desert ; 
but I think I can promise him the approbation of his own 
conscience, the approbation of all good and reasonable men, 
and of Almighty God who does justice and who will reward. 
(Loud cheers). 

Mr. Montague Chambers, Q.C., in returning thanks 
for the Bar, said, —We ought to be greatly obliged to the 
learned judge who has just sat down, for so admirable a 
speech. I had little thought of being called upon to 
return thanks for the Bar of England. It is known that 
the occupation of the profession to which I belong is, if 
possible, to discover truth, to obtain justice, and to vindi- 
cate the oppressed. We have it in our power on many 
occasions to do justice to the present as well as the 
absent, and I am delighted to think that we have heard 
this parting injunction — " When I am a stranger in a 
foreign land, don't foi^et that you are my friends." I for 
one will not forget that injunction (cheers), and I am 
sure that my friends who are engaged in a noble pro- 
fession will never allow it to escape their memory, and 
will never forget those great principles so well stated by 
Sir James Brooke,— ever to do justice to the absent, and 
never to condemn unheard. The Bar of England, in the 
associations in which they are permitted to mix in public 
festivals, always esteem the high &vour which they receive 
in one of the standing toasts of England. They are vain 



330 APPENDIX. 

and proud enough to suppose that they will do their duty, 
and be esteemed just and honourable men. I desire to 
express, on the part of the Bar of England, their thanks for 
the opportunity we have had afforded to us of giving 
our feeble, but feeling testimony, towards the estimation in 
which Sir James Brooke is held by the common profession. 
We know his merits — we have felt his wrongs as though 
they were our own. We have watched his proceedings 
with deep anxiety. Speaking for myself, I may say that I 
was not invited here. I solicited to be invited. A frigid 
of my own accidentally mentioned to me that this dinner 
was to take place, and I immediately expressed my 
deep anxiety to be present. It is well known to Sir James 
Brooke that I am related to one of those noble captains 
who assisted him in repressing those piratical proceedings 
he has mentioned, and I felt as though a wound was 
inflicted upon myself when slanders were uttered against 
Sir James Brooke. Independently, therefore, of the 
Bar of England, I am deeply anxious about the meeting 
of to-day. It has struck me as one of the most im- 
portant things in this matter, that there should be an 
assembly of men of all classes united in one common 
feeling to do justice to an honourable man, not to pay him 
an empty compliment, but to carry to his heart the 
conviction of his fellow-countrymen that he deserved their 
r^ard. (Cheers.) 

The Chairman, — The best arrangements are always 
liable to unforeseen interruptions, and it is to the Chancellor 
of the Exchequer having fixed this evening for his budget 



APPENDIX. 331 

that we are deprived of the honour of Lord Palmerston's 
company. There is no person in this kingdom who has 
taken a deeper feeling in this matter, or who has expressed 
his feelings in stronger terms than that Noble Lord. It 
was my intention, in proposing the toast of the House 
of Commons, to have coupled with it the name of Lord 
Palmerston. It is a toast I should have had great 
|deasure in proposing, because his Lordship has taken 
a most able part in the discussions which have arisen 
in the House of Commons in reference to the suppression 
of piracy in the Bornean seas. I think I shall best 
discharge the duty I have now to perform in asking you 
to drink, in connexion with the House of Commons, the 
health of Mr. Henry Drummond, the member for West 
Surrey. (Cheers.) 

Mr, Henry Drummond, M.P. — ^The honour you have 
done me, I must say, is very unexpected, for I came here 
to enjoy the pleasure of uniting with you in drink- 
ing the health of Sir James Brooke, and not at all with the 
expectation that you should unite with Sir James Brooke in 
drinking mine. (Laughter.) Still less did I think that I 
should be set up as the substitute for my firiend and old 
school-fellow, Lord Palmerston, in whose shoes I am most 
unworthy to tread. But I have been required to acknow- 
ledge the toast by my friend in the chair — a friend of two 
generations, for his father was my friend. He has re- 
quested me to return thanks for the House of Commons ; 
and I must say, I am somewhat surprised, after what you 
have heard of the House of Commons, that you should 



332 APPENDIX. 

think it worth while to propose its health at all.. (Laugh* 
ter.) As you have called upon me to return thanks, I do 
so, because I adhere to the first teaching of my school*boy 
days, — " Obedience fh)m a sense of duty." It is perfectly 
true that I do not stand here as an old friend of Sir James 
Brooke. It happened, that being much abroad at the time 
to which he has alluded, I had scarcely heard his name, 
until a gentleman in the House of Commons — a worthy, 
good sort of man, in his narrow way — ^I have no objection 
to mention his name, it was Mr. Cobden — said to me one 
day, when the piracy question was coming on, — '^ Did you 
ever look into this question ? I wish you would look into 
these papers," at the same time giving me a host of 
books on the subject. Well, I read all these wondrous 
blue books and white books ; and I came firom the perusal 
with a conviction exactly the opposite to that at which Mr. 
Cobden had arrived — with the strongest possible conviction 
that Sir James Brooke had taken the right course, — ^the 
only proper course that, under the circumstances, he 
possibly could have taken. (Cheers.) Now, I don't believe 
that this contest is yet at an end. I look to this meeting, 
here assembled, as of very great importance; not as a thing 
that is to pass away like a glass of effervescing champs^e, 
but as evincing a determination on your part to screw your 
courage to the sticking-point. I tell you that this persecu- 
tion will not cease — will not abate. On the votes of the 
House to-night a motion on this subject has been renewed, 
and it will be your duty to unite and stand by us to see 
that right is done to a noble and slandered man. I thank 



APPENDIX. 833 

you on behalf of the House of Commons, such as it is. 
(Liaughter.) 

Mr. HecMam, M.P. — The duty of proposing the next 
toast has been intrusted to me. It will not want a word 
of recommendation ; but I propose, if you will allow me 
to say oue word for myself. The only part I had to take 
in the House of Commons in reference to this matter was 
to state a plain unvarnished tale, — to tell that tale to an 
assembly who, however it may be influenced by circum- 
stances which have a temporary effect, is still an assembly 
of English gentlemen, upon whose verdict any man may 
rely for justice. The toast I have to propose is — The pro- 
gress of Civilization in Borneo. It expresses a deeper 
feeling, and a higher tone of sentiment, than is usually 
given from the dinner-table. But I look upon this meeting 
as one of no ordinary character. We do not come here for 
mere enjoyment, or for idle ceremony, but in pursuance of 
a solemn act of duty and justice. With that view I have 
come away from scenes of some interest in the House of 
Commons, to express my sympathy with a man who, 
amidst difficulties almost unparalleled, difficulties in a 
foreign land, has struggled for the noblest object it is 
given to man to accomplish^ — ^to beat back the barriers of 
darkness and barbarism, and to spread the light of civi- 
lization and true religion amongst a benighted people. 
(Cheers.) I have to propose — Progress to that civilization. 
It is not for us to say how that shall advance in future 
ages ; but the seed has been sown, the light has been kin- 
dled, and no man can say what fruit it shall bring forth in 



334 APPENDIX. 

after ages. The House of Commons has vindicated the 
character of Sir James Brooke, and has thrown back the 
calumnies cast upon him, upon their authors ; but his vin- 
dication would not have been complete had not the 
citizens of London met on this occasion to express their 
sympathies with Sir James Brooke, and their hopes 
that the blessing of Providence may rest upon his labours. 
(Cheers.) 

Toast — The progress of Civilization in Borneo. 

Mr. J, D. Pawles. — Sir, I have very great satisfiustion 
in bringing to the notice of this meeting the next toast 
upon the Chairman's list, conveying a tribute of respect to 
Vice- Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane and the other gallant 
officers who have so zealously served in the measures taken 
against the pirates of Borneo. (Cheers.) Often has it 
happened in this City of London, that its merchants have 
had to express their grateful sense of the exertions of the 
national marine in the protection of its commerce. 
Some of us here can remember, during the long war this 
country was engaged in, when our convoys of merchant 
marine stretched from shore to shore, how vigilantly they 
were guarded by our naval officers ; and, although it not 
unfrequently happened that three or four hundred vessels 
were left to the care of a single vessel of war, how rarely 
it occurred that the wolf was able to snatch one from that 
large fold intrusted to their care. And in the long peace 
which has since ensued, we find the national marine ever on 
the watch to protect our commercial interests on distant 
coasts, whenever cases of collision arising between other 



APPENDIX. 335 

states call for their interference. But there can be no ser- 
vice in which the national marine can be engaged more 
useful to commerce or more interesting to humanity than 
when it is repressing the dreadful evil of piracy-^the 
greatest crime of any that can be foimd in the catalogue of 
human offences. Strange, indeed, it is, that when engaged 
in putting down an offence so direfuUy destructive in its 
character, suspicion or mistrust should have been cast upon 
men occupied in so holy a cause. Stranger still is it, that 
naen are to be found in this metropolis who affect to be 
ignorant of the existence of piracy in those seas. Why, 
we have in this room a merchant who has had as lai^ 
dealings in that part of the world as any other man, whose 
own brother was taken captive by these pirates, his life in- 
humanly sacrificed, with a ship and cargo worth 30,000/. ; 
and yet in this very house a meeting was held — ^I was 
almost going to say, of idiots, pretending to rebuke the 
manner in which the great crimes prevailing there had been 
put down. I have attended many meetings of a public 
character in this city, but I have never one so substantially 
attended as that in which we are now taking part, and I 
trust it will go forth to the world not only as a vindication 
of Sir James Brooke, but as a determination expressed by 
the citizena of London, that they will not allow such 
scandals to go unanswered. (Loud cheers.) It is a great 
evil that is to be put down, and we offer our earnest hope 
that the attempts already made will be steadfastly followed 
up, until the evil shall be utterly annihilated. I beg to 
propose the health of Vice- Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane 



1 



336 APPENDIX. 

and the other officers who have served against the pirates 
of Borneo. (Cheers.) 

Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane, — I can most 
unfeignedly say that I am quite taken by surprise on the 
present occasion, for I am not aware that I deserved such 
an honour. I hold it to be a very distinguished honour to 
be asked to meet your illustrious guest, Sir James Brooke. 
I was delighted to hear that the merchants of London 
intended to confer that honour upon him, for I always 
believed that every man who did his duty to his country 
would always be supported by his country. You will 
accuse me if I detain you a few minutes in addressing you 
upon the subject of the individual whom you have invited 
here to-night. When any gentleman is called upon to 
bear testimony to the public or private character of another, 
there are two essential points to be regarded, — first, that 
he should be perfectly impartial, and second, that he 
should have a thorough knowledge of the subject on which 
he is addressing you. I feel I am in a position to maintain 
both these propositions. I met Sir James, then Mr. Brooke, 
some years ago, not having the slightest previous acquaint- 
ance with him. I met him upon public grounds and in 
reference to public duties, and in the position I held as 
Commander-in-Chief of the Fleet, I had opportunities of 
observing him. Our respective duties brought us very 
much into communication with each other. Mr. Brooke, 
on one occasion, lived for more than six weeks on boaid 
my flag-ship. He did so again the following year, and at 
a subsequent period he lived with me three months at 



APPENDIX 337 

Penang, and I think, therefore, I am qualified to bear 
testimony to his character. (Hear, hear.) Yarious cir- 
cumstances induced me to proceed to the coast of Borneo, 
in consequence of representations made to me, and Sir 
James Brooke placed himself at my disposal. Upon that 
occasion I went to Borneo and destroyed a piratical place 
called Malludu, and on another occasion captured the 
town of Brun^. On these and other occasions I found in 
Sir James Brooke a person most devoted, and most kind 
and liberal to the people, and on every occasion we went 
there, he stated his strong impression as to the necessity of 
forbearance, and his anxiety for the wel&re of the people. 
I visited parts of Borneo where no European had ever been 
before, and even in those parts the people came out and 
mentioned with delight the name of Brooke; in fiict, 
wherever I went, I found his name was a sort of talisman. 
These are strong illustrations of the feeling entertained 
towards him by the natives, and of the strong anxiety he 
evinced to secure good feeling amongst the people over 
whom he was placed, and to protect them. When I went 
to the city of Brune, and captured it, the sultan ran away, 
and, in &ct, had abdicated. Now, I had very strong 
impressions at that time, and I may mention them, to show 
you what my feelings were with regard to your honoured 
guest. I am not sure whether I have ever conveyed 
those impressions to Sir James Brooke or not. I was 
strongly impressed ; if I could at that moment, I would 
have conferred upon him the Sultanship. (Loud cheers.) 
I bad the power to do it, and I felt it would have been 
VOL. m. Q 



388 APPENDIX. 

received with acclamation by the whole population, and 
that it would have been a most important thing for that 
country, both as regards the civilization and the happiness 
of the people. I cannot bear stronger testimony to Sir 
James Brooke's character than by telling you what were 
my impressions of him at that moment, and I deeply r^ret 
that I did not feel empowered to carry out my views. But 
since that time Sir James Brooke has been attacked and 
calunmiated by certain members of the House of Com- 
mons. They never attacked the naval officers who com« 
manded there, but they fixed all their charges upon Sir 
James Brooke, who was not responsible, and had nothii^ 
whatever to do with the matters to which they referred. I 
wish also to state to you that those persons who have so 
improperly attacked Sir James Brooke were told that if 
they liked to come to me, I would give them every infor* 
mation fully and honestly, having been out at Borneo a 
longtime; but not one of them ever came to me. (Cheers.) 
I have felt, gentlemen, that what I have said was not only 
due to you, but due to your honoured guest. I cannot 
pity Sir James Brooke, on account of the attacks which 
have been made upon him, for his calumniators have 
brought out his character in a manner which probably 
would not have been the case if the attacks had not been 
made. I thank you, gentlemen, once more, for the honour 
you have done me in drinking my health. 

The Chairman, — Gentlemen, I have had occasion already 
to allude to the gentlemen connected with the East India 
Company who are present this evening, and I am sure the 



AFPSNDDL 339 

toast I am aboat to propose will be acceptable to jou. I 
think there is no pobfic body whose membeis are more 
capable, on aecoont of the scenes they have themselTes 
witnessed, of d^Tering a free and impartial opinion on 
sacfa matters as we haYo had noder oar consideratioQ this 
evening. I pn^wse the health of the Directofs of the 
East India Company, who have been so good as to bonoor 
us with their company this eyening. (Cheers.) 

Sir •/. Zov Ztvskhtgiam. — ^In retnnung thanks for the 
toast you have jost drank, I may be allowed to say, that in 
his endeavoors to diminish piracy in the Archipelago, not 
only has Sir James Brooke done a great service to Eng- 
land, but he has done a great service to all that part of the 
world. We are anxious that that country should be pre- 
served. I can only say, that the East India Company b 
deeply gratefhl to Sir James Brooke for his endeavours to 
put down piracy, and to promote the general improvement 
of the country with which he has now been, for some years 
past, so honourably connected. 

The ChaarmoM, — Grentlemen, there is another great 
body most efficiently r^resented here this evening — I 
mean, the Bank of England. In proposing that institu- 
tion, I think I nu^ say, as there are several of my 
brother prq>rietorB present, that it may be well for them to 
ascertain how they manage, in Borneo, to get 24 per cent, 
a-month on small loans ; for it is not a usoal or customary 
per-centage in this country. As a proprietor, I would 
suggest to the Directors the expediency o{ sending over a 
commissioner, according to the ^shion of the day, to ascar- 

VOL. m. K 



340 APPENDIX. 

tain how this is done. It might prove a satis&ctory way 
of investing the spare capital that is now coming over to 
this country. (Laughter.) I propose to you — The Direc- 
tors of the Bank of England. 

Mr. Thomson Hcmkey^ Jun.-^l may say, on the part of 
the Directors of the Bank of England, that they feel it to 
be a great compliment to be allowed to be present on such 
an interesting occasion as this. It gives us great and 
sincere gratification to bear our testim(»iy, as members of 
one of the oldest corporations of the City of London, to 
your distinguished guest on this occasion. It has very 
often been my lot to dine in this room, and to take part in 
many public assemblies ; but I never witnessed so mixed 
an assembly as this in support of a common object. (Cheers.) 
The Directors of the !Eiank of England owe a deep debt of 
gratitude to Sir James Brooke, and they are anxious fuUy 
to express that feeling on this interesting occasion. They 
felt it but due to him to express their opinion of his pro- 
ceedings on every available opportunity, and witnessed 
with great satis&ction the entertainment now given to 
him. I have not attended this festival to vindicate the 
character of Sir James Brooke, for I never thought it 
wanted any vindication (loud cheers); for the facts have 
been patent to all the world, and must carry conviction to 
the mind of every person who is not warped by prejudice. 
On behalf of the Directors of the Bank of England, I b^ 
to acknowledge the toast you have drunk, and thank yoii 
for the opportunity you have afforded us in expressing our 
opinion of Sir James Brooke and the course he has pursued. 



APPENDIX. 341 

The Chairman. — Gentleman, the last but not the least 
of the toasts I beg to submit to you is — The Corporation 
of the City of London. I have great satisfaction in giving 
this toast, because Sir James Brooke is a member of that 
Corporation — a Fishmonger and Goldsmith. The satis- 
faction I have in proposing the toast is considerably 
enhanced by being enabled to couple with it the name of 
Mr. Alderman Finnis. (Cheers.) 

Alderman Finnis, — At this late hour of the evening, I 
will not detain you. I had the honour of being present, 
some ieTf years ago, when Sir James Brooke publicly stated 
the course of proceeding he should adopt ; and I have the 
satisfaction of saying that he has most nobly fulfilled his 
engagements. I hope he will live long to uphold the 
British character in the land of his adoption. (Loud 
cheers.) 

The company then separated. 



THE END. 



LONDON : 

PRINTED BY W. CLOWES AND SONS, STAMI>ORD STREET 
AND CHARING CROSS. 



ERRATA. 



Vol. I. — Page 124, line 2, for " form " read " for." 

Vol. II.— Page 32, line 2, for " who" read " which." 
„ „ 95, line ^, for " current ecalamo" read 

" cuxrente calamo." 
„ „ 106, line 10, fw " are** read " is." 

„ „ 219, line 15, for " affected" reod " effected." 

„ „ 256, Note, " from it " dele. 



-y*jlf- 



^ 



4 



g 



1 






. J.V 



^^miM^imm^^ 







^,!?^i;.j=;^?*S;1^i*:i??^^^|f|?^;sa>^ 



><-«-r*-^=.\ 1!